ABSTRACT
The Electronic Landscape-Historical Atlas of Moscow region is a combination of a traditional atlas and geographical informational system (GIS), and has two main foundations. The first is a traditional set of cartographical maps collected for specific purposes by certain methodological principles. The second is a GIS with large data bases. The landscape-historical atlas generalizes the results of long-term field landscape historical and archaeological investigations, as well as the materials of field, expedition, office studies, and archival data. These are maps (modem, authorial, and archival), verbal descriptions, and tables. The history of man's mastering of landscapes and the consequences of the interaction dynamics of society and nature in Moscow region are shown in this atlas. Research has been conducted at the Department of Landscape Study and Physical Geography, Geographical Faculty of Moscow State University since the 1970s. The main goal of the atlas is investigation of the human impact on landscapes in space and time and elaboration of methods for anthropogenic landscape genesis research. From the initial stage of the formation of society, people have lived in close interaction with nature and concrete landscapes. However, unreasonable actions lead to ecological
conflicts, and such conflicts are a great problem for human survival. The investigation of man's impact on the environment and nature is a key topic of modem science. Traces of these problems were typical for the study area from the initial stage of landscape mastering. For example, in the Bronze Age, over-pasturization of pigs was the cause of deforestation of floodlands in central Russia. In the Iron Age, development of slash-bum clearing for ploughed fields resulted in secondary aspen and birch forest development. Therefore, spatial and retrospective analysis and mapping are very important for determining the peculiarities of the results of the mutual man-nature influence process, and the historical approach and use of GIS technology are necessary for studying land-use changes.
