In recent years, the use of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) technology in the mining industry has grown in popularity because of its many benefits, including non-contact measurement, high precision, rapid data acquisition, and large-scale coverage. This study provides a thorough overview of the application of the TLS method in underground, open-pit, and closed mines, using data from 56 publications over the past fourteen years, from 2010 to May 2024. The reviewed literature shows that the TLS approach can be applied in five main operations in mining areas, particularly for monitoring deformation, displacement, subsidence, and landslides, as well as generating maps, 3D models, and point clouds. The findings reveal that TLS is an excellent technology for multitasking in any type of mine. In addition, future development trends for the mining industry based on the integration of TLS with machine learning and AI technologies are also discussed in this study. The results of this study may suggest directions for creating the specifications required for TLS deployment on mine sites.

The purpose of the study is to demonstrate the potential of geohistorical and geocultural approaches for the analysis of the spatial development of regions in Ukraine. In the modern context of geopolitics and geoeconomics, these approaches provide a basis for forming a new image of areas and their territorial structures, considering geographical, linguistic, cultural, and religious characteristics, as well as specific regional identity. The novelty of the study lies in its analysis of strategies for analyzing regional systems, the ratios of regional to national values, and the formation of regional identity through the use of geohistorical methodological concepts. It has been shown that, under conditions of awareness of their regions’ self-sufficiency and capacity for self-development, geocultural approaches are no less effective than geoeconomic ones, providing an understanding of the uniqueness of the country’s cultural space, regional personality types, and communication methods. In the context of modern transformations of globalization, geohistorical and geocultural approaches to the study of spatial specificity are gaining momentum and offer opportunities to develop cultural and mental models of space and to interpret territory as a sociocultural integrity with its own unique pace of development.

The article presents an analysis of the spatial and temporal distribution characteristics of dry thunderstorms in Ukraine over five years. Dry thunderstorms, accompanied by lightning but without significant precipitation, are a dangerous meteorological phenomenon that can cause fires, resulting in varying degrees of damage. An analysis was conducted using satellite rainfall data (IMERG/GPM) and lightning detection systems to examine the spatial and temporal distributions of dry thunderstorms, their frequency, and their impact on wildfire risk. Special attention was given to regional differences in the distribution of dry thunderstorms and the identification of areas with the highest risk of wildfires caused by lightning. The study analyzed satellite precipitation data and lightning detection system data from regions of Ukraine over five years, covering the months of May to September annually. The results indicate that the highest frequency of dry thunderstorms is observed in Chernivtsi, Odesa, Mykolaiv, and Kyiv regions. The obtained results indicate the level of risk of dry lightning during thunderstorms in the different areas. They can be beneficial for regional meteorological services, local authorities, and enterprises seeking to enhance their early warning and response systems for extreme weather events.

The article presents a methodology for assessing the damage caused by the creation of military trenches. It calculates the regulating and supporting ecosystem services based on biomass, mortar and soil energy. The methodology was tested on a 70-year-old pine forest and a 120-year-old oak forest. It provides for the assessment of direct losses caused by military trenches as a result of destruction and indirect losses as a result of damage to different ecosystem components, considering the time needed for recovery to the native state. The monetary value of the losses due to trenches of 42 m2 for pine and oak forests is 49.5 and 56.6 thousand USD, respectively, and the indirect losses due to dumps of 166.7 m2 are 61.9 and 70.8 thousand USD, respectively. The methodology can be used for the purpose of compensation for the damage caused to the natural ecosystems.

This study aims to present the main conceptual and methodological approaches to the consideration of the cultural and landscape heritage of Ukraine as a subject of scientific research and the results of its cartographic visualization in the form of a thematic electronic atlas. The electronic atlas, “Ukraine. The Cultural and Landscape Heritage,” was established as a key strategy to accelerate the practical implementation and popularization of the cultural and landscape approach to protecting, preserving, and managing Ukraine’s cultural and natural heritage. The atlas was created based on the elaborated concept of understanding and developing cultural and landscape heritage, allowing spatial information to be structured and visualized. As a result, the first national electronic cartographic product on this topic was created, which provided a spatial representation of the peculiarities of Ukraine’s cultural and landscape heritage. The distribution and use of the atlas will contribute to further developing thematic mapping and atlas geographic information systems for the protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage.

The article studies the geographical prerequisites and factors of the long-term Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Russia-Ukraine confrontation has been going on in Eastern Europe for several hundred years and has now acquired the existential character of a genocidal war. The modern Russia-Ukraine war, which began in 2014, is considered in this study as one of the stages of a long and multi-level confrontation. In the author’s opinion, this long-running conflict is close to the point of the most complete involvement of resources by the parties to the conflict, that is, maximum escalation. This study aims to determine the role of geographical factors in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The main result of this geoconflictological study is to determine the influence of geographical prerequisites and geographical factors on the course of the long-term and multi-level Russia-Ukraine conflict. In particular, it was established that the deep contradictions underlying this conflict were laid down at the pre-conflict stage. The role of the geographical location of the subjects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict is also determined. The author emphasizes the significant importance of distance in Russia-Ukraine relations. In particular, the role of these factors in creating the contradictions that formed the subject of this long-term and multi-level conflict is determined. The influence of geospatial, historical-geographical, and political-geographical factors on the overall course of this conflict is analyzed. This article, for the first time, defines the role and significance of geographical prerequisites and factors in the Russia-Ukraine conflict from the research standpoint of geoconflictology.

The article estimates the number and composition of migrants from Ukraine from various sources of information, identifies the extent and causes of information contradictions, and examines the prospects for the return of migrants The importance of different perceptions of the situation by migrants and those who stay in Ukraine is highlighted. The author describes the information support and the reasons for the existing contradictions. The migration prospects are defined in terms of the situation and adaptation of Ukrainians abroad, employment and unemployment, education, family composition, for example, the presence of children, the elderly, and chronically ill persons in the family, socio-economic claims, housing and sources of income in Ukraine, the estimates of current and future situation in different regions of Ukraine. 70% of Ukrainian war women-migrants have a university degree. Most of these women are already working. Their non-return would cause enormous damage to Ukraine’s human capital. The prospects for the return of external war migrants are directly related to the duration of their stay in another country, which, in turn, is a function of the war duration—the longer it lasts, the greater the destruction in Ukraine, and thus the more families lose their housing and jobs. The more migrants find work abroad, the more they adapt to a new life in a new society. Another risk is related to the possibility of a so-called second wave of war migration of their husbands. The role of migration as the main driver of demographic dynamics and labor supply in Ukraine is clarified. The external migration impact on post-war development will be very important. The destruction of infrastructure, business, and the settlement system is characterized by significant territorial differentiation. It will also be characteristic of the post-war structure of Ukraine. The main territorial clusters of post-war recovery are identified. The possibilities and channels of influence on external migration by various actors: the state, local authorities, employers, and civil society—are identified and formulated, considering the characteristics of each cluster.

The article is devoted to the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the Institute of Geography of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. The publication analyzes the latest most important publications by employees of the paleogeography sector in cited domestic and international publications since the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (2017). At that time, the main directions of scientific research by employees of the paleogeography sector of the Institute of Geography of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine were: the study of Quaternary sediments of different ages (including ancient and modern soils); update of paleogeographic databases to obtain comprehensive information about the state of natural components of the territory of Ukraine in the past; reproduction of ancient ecological conditions and natural conditions of human habitation in separate stages of the Pleistocene and Holocene; correlation of paleogeographical, archaeological and historical data (to reproduce the cultural dynamics and processes of development of the modern territory of Ukraine in the Paleolithic, Eneolithic, Copper, Bronze, Iron Age, etc.); study of promising methods and directions of paleogeographic assessment of the natural conditions of formation and accumulation of certain types of minerals.

Today, the most effective methods of studying polygonal objects of historical and cultural heritage are cartometric and remote (mainly based on the processing of remote sensing data). If necessary, also use archeology, but only after using the specified methods. This work presents the application of the cartometric method using GIS technologies on the example of determining the boundaries of Jewish cemeteries in the village of Gornostaypil, Kyiv region, which is located on the border of the Chernobyl thirty-kilometer exclusion zone, and in the village of Olyka, Volyn region. Today, the territory of the cemeteries is not used for burials, and in the Soviet period, in the village of Gornostaypil, it was built up with administrative and economic buildings, in the village of Olyka, partly by the private sector. Both archival and modern cartographic products and remote sensing data served as input data. Thus, all cartographic products are small-scale, due to the display of objects and the generalization of the border and area of cemeteries, they are displayed distorted, so their use is conditioned by the study of the dynamics of the elevation of cemeteries. To display the historical boundaries of objects in the modern urban planning picture, plans of cemeteries on a scale of 1:500 were created using geodetic methods using GNSS surveying.