The Arctic zone of the Russian Federation is one of the most intensively developing regions of the country. Amongst the major domains of economic and industrial growth and improvement is transport infrastructure and particularly the railway network. This area is being exposed to negative factors of rapid climate change that can significantly affect and compromise this activity. Thus, it is vital to take them into account during design, construction, and operation of the railway infrastructure facilities. This work details the production of a digital atlas comprising the 1950–2021 dynamics of the main hydrometeorological parameters: air and soil temperature, precipitation, wind speed, air and soil humidity, and snow cover thickness. The maps are based on climatic data derived from the MERRA-2 (Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications, version 2) reanalysis. In total there are 459, which are arranged into 7 chapters. The atlas geographically covers the western part of the Russian Arctic encompassing the regions of quite intensive transport development, which includes the construction of the Northern Latitudinal Railway. Original algorithms of geospatial data processing and their further representation as well as the maps compiled in GIS environment are discussed. Comprehensive analysis of climatic changes in the region of the Russian Arctic including detailed quantitative evaluation over 40 years is given. In the Discussion, we focus on those changes of the regional climate which, from our point of view, are the most significant for consideration by railway operators. The obtained results contribute to framing the theoretical basis of design, development, and sustainable operation of the railway infrastructure in the Arctic and facilitate the decision-making process. This is the first experience of building a specialized climatic cartographic product for the needs of the Russian railways, and to our knowledge the first atlas such as that in the world. In the future, the amassed experience may be transferred to other regions of the Russian Federation as well as similar regions in Canada, Sweden and Highland China that are also subject to significant climate change.

A unique geoinformation service “The Interactive Geology Atlas” has been created and launched based on the data obtained by the Authors during years of research and evaluation of integrated biostratigraphic, paleomagnetic and sedimentological data as well as published references materials. The Interactive Atlas includes geological sections comprehensively studied, described and mapped. Contrary to analogous services, the Atlas covers more territory of Paratethys and time laps and allows to add various content depending on the user requirements. All maps (basemaps) are available for study both individually and joint for comprehensive analysis through the compiling the unified legend to all layers and maps. The combination of different data allows to track how the paleogeographic conditions of the Paratethys territory have evolved and to highlight the main events associated with fluctuations in climate, salinity, etc. Besides being scientifically interesting, the Atlas can become useful in geologic exploration with a view to evaluate the potential areas of mineral resources. For instance, paleogeographic maps are crucial in this regard. FAIR principles have become the reference criteria for improving datasets: Findability, Accessibility, Interoperability, and Reusability.

Arctic zone of the Russian Federation (AZRF) is the region of intensive economic development. In this regard, it is critical to give an adequate assessment of natural factors that may have a negative impact on the growing technological infrastructure. Rapid climate change effects show a significant influence on this activity, including the railway network development. Hence, the decision-making community requires relevant information on climatic variations that can put at hazard the construction and operation of railway facilities. This paper presents the analysis of climatic changes within the region of Central and Western Russian Arctic in 1980–2021. It was performed using the new electronic Atlas of climatic variations in main hydrometeorological parameters, created for the Russian Railways in 2023. This geoinformatic product includes about 400 digital maps reflecting the variability of seven climatic parameters over more than four decades within the studied region. These parameters are air temperature, total precipitation, wind speed, soil temperature, soil moisture content, air humidity, and snow cover thickness. The analysis of climatic maps and their comparison between selected periods showed spatial and temporal heterogeneity of climatic variations in this region. This justifies the feasibility of further research using additional analytical instruments, such as Hovmöller diagrams, time series graphs, etc. The implementation of advanced geoinformatic products in the practice of the Russian Railways will facilitate sustainable development of its infrastructure in rapidly altering climatic conditions.

Observed climate change has significantly impacted land transportation infrastructure, including roads, railways, bridges, seaport facilities, runways, and other components. It also affects traffic management and the efficiency of the transport system, influencing maintenance costs, travel safety, and traffic flow speeds. This issue is particularly critical for the Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation (AZRF), which is undergoing rapid economic development. Despite its expanding technological infrastructure, the region remains highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. A comprehensive assessment of these environmental risks is essential to ensure sustainable regional growth. Observed and projected changes in temperature and humidity generally have adverse effects on the condition and operation of transportation infrastructure. The primary types of negative impacts linked to climate change have already emerged, and these trends are expected to intensify by the mid-21st century. This paper analyses projected climate change in the Western Russian Arctic for 2023–2064. Using the CNRM-CM6-1-HR model from Phase 6 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP6), it evaluates three socioeconomic scenarios (SSP1-2.6, SSP2-4.5, SSP5-8.5). The results are compiled in an electronic atlas mapping the projected distribution of air and soil temperature, total precipitation, wind speed, and snow cover thickness. Analysis of projection revealed non-linear climate model variations, where parameter values can overlap across scenarios and change rates can be unexpectedly higher in optimistic pathways. These projections, assessed against a 1980–1989 baseline, were visualised in regional maps to detail hydrometeorological changes for 2023–2064. This analysis of regional climate change is vital for sustainably managing railway infrastructure. The results highlight a heterogeneous Arctic climate and identify potentially hazardous phenomena expected to increase in frequency and impact.

This paper presents a set of various geological and geophysical data for the Arctic zone, including some detailed models for the eastern part of the Russian Arctic zone. This hard-to-access territory has a complex geological structure, which is poorly studied by direct geophysical methods. Therefore, these data can be used in an integrative analysis for different purposes. These are the gravity field, heat flow, and various seismic tomography models. The gravity field data include several reductions calculated during our preceding studies, which are more appropriate for the study of the Earth’s interiors than the initial free air anomalies. Specifically, these are the Bouguer, isostatic, and decompensative gravity anomalies. A surface heat flow map included in the dataset is based on a joint inversion of multiple geophysical data constrained by the observations from the International Heat Flow Commission catalog. Available seismic tomography models were analyzed to select the best one for further investigation. We provide the models for the sedimentary cover and the Moho depth, which are significantly improved compared to the existing ones. The database provides a basis for qualitative and quantitative analysis of the region.

The Arctic Zone of the Russian Federation is characterized by the rapid growth of the mining industry, aimed at the extraction of oil, gas, coal, and ores, including rare earth metals. Railways are essential in the transportation of these resources to different regions of Russia for processing and export. Part of the cargo delivery is performed via the Arctic ports connected to the railway network. Rapid climate change, including regional climate warming, is among the compromising factors for the operation of the Arctic transport infrastructure. System analysis of climatic processes and assessment of potential hazards that they may induce requires adequate geoinformation support. This paper presents the results of spatio-temporal variability analysis of various hydrometeorological parameters for selected railway mainlines within the Arctic region. For this purpose, a new geoinformation method based on the Hovmöller diagrams was elaborated. This tool is useful for representing climate dynamics along the specified railway mainlines over several decades. It allows us to determine railway sections affected by anomalous climatic conditions on the variable time scale. The presented Hovmöller diagrams proved to be an efficient instrument for the regional climate change representation. It might be quite useful for railway infrastructure maintenance, planning, operation, and adaptation.