Kurchatov, Kazakhstan

Kurchatov Курчатов
Seal
Kurchatov Location in Kazakhstan
Coordinates: 50°45′24″N 78°32′24″E / 50.75667°N 78.54000°E / 50.75667; 78.54000
Country	Kazakhstan
Region	Abai Region
Founded	1947
Incorporated (city)	1948
Government
• Akim (mayor)	Abdraliev Bolat[1]
Area
• Total	16 km2 (6 sq mi)
Website	http://kurchatov.vko.gov.kz/

Kurchatov (in Kazakh and Russian: Курча́тов) is a town in Abai Region in north-east Kazakhstan. Named after Soviet nuclear physicist Igor Kurchatov, the town was once the centre of operations for the adjoining Semipalatinsk Test Site. With the cessation of nuclear testing and the decommissioning of the test site, Kurchatov's population has fallen from over 20,000 to around 8,000.^[2] In its heyday, Kurchatov (which was known by its postal code Semipalatinsk-21) was a closed city, one of the most secretive and restricted places in the Soviet Union. The nuclear facilities at Kurchatov are managed by the Kazakhstan Institute of Atomic Energy, a division of the country's National Nuclear Center.