Russian Academy of Sciences

The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; Russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) Rossíiskaya akadémiya naúk) consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across the Russian Federation; and additional scientific and social units such as libraries, publishing units, and hospitals. Headquartered in Moscow, the Academy (RAS) is considered a civil, self-governed, non-commercial organization chartered by the Government of Russia. It combines the members of RAS (see below) and scientists employed by institutions. Near the central academy building there is a monument to Yuri Gagarin in the square bearing his name. As of November 2017, the Academy included 1008 institutions and other units; in total about 125,000 people were employed of whom 47,000 were scientific researchers.