   andrei dmitrievich sakharov (; may 21, 1921december 14, 1989) was a russian nuclear physicist, soviet dissident and human rights activist. he became renowned as the designer of the soviet union's third idea, a codename for soviet development of thermonuclear weapons. sakharov was an advocate of civil liberties and civil reforms in the soviet union. he was awarded the nobel peace prize in 1975. the sakharov prize, which is awarded annually by the european parliament for people and organizations dedicated to human rights and freedoms, is named in his honour.biography, by american institute of physics == biography == sakharov was born in moscow on may 21, 1921. his father was dmitri ivanovich sakharov, a private school physics teacher and an amateur pianist.autobiography, the nobel foundation 1975 his father later taught at the second moscow state university.sidney david drell, sergeÇ petrovich kapitsa, sakharov remembered: a tribute by friends and colleagues (1991), p. 4 dmitri's grandfather ivan had been a prominent lawyer in imperial russia who had displayed respect for social awareness and humanitarian principles (including advocating the abolition of [[capital punishment in russia
1921_births 1989_deaths Full_Members_of_the_USSR_Academy_of_Sciences Grand_Crosses_of_the_Order_of_the_Cross_of_Vytis_(Lithuania) Heroes_of_Socialist_Labour,_three_times Lenin_Prize_winners Members_of_the_French_Academy_of_Sciences Members_of_the_United_States_National_Academy_of_Sciences Moscow_State_University_alumni Nobel_Peace_Prize_laureates Nuclear_weapons_program_of_the_Soviet_Union Perestroika Prix_mondial_Cino_Del_Duca_winners Recipients_of_the_Order_of_Lenin,_four_times Russian_Nobel_laureates Russian_atheists Russian_inventors Russian_socialists Soviet_antianuclear_weapons_activists Soviet_dissidents Soviet_nuclear_physicists Stalin_Prize_winners Writers_from_Moscow