Although the XXXI General Assembly (GA) of the IAU had to be postponed to August 2022 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the triennium Business Sessions are still scheduled to go ahead in August 2021, albeit in virtual format. These sessions will begin at 15:00 CEST on Monday 23 August and Thursday 26 August 2021, lasting for a maximum of 2 hours each. The agenda for these meetings, approved at the Executive Committee meeting on 19 May 2021, is available here.

All Individual and Junior Members and other interested participants are encouraged to attend the Business Sessions via YouTube LiveStream (the link to this will be sent to all Members by email). Recordings will be available to watch after the livestream to accommodate different time zones. The IAU Members will be able to access a  Slack Channel for comments and questions, which the IAU Officers and Secretariat will monitor, communicating relevant questions to the speakers. National Members, the Executive Committee, Division Presidents, and other speakers will participate by Zoom.

Proposals of new IAU Resolutions will be presented during these Business Sessions, and Individual and Junior Members will have the opportunity to vote on them electronically. The voting will open on 26 August and close on 10 September 2021. The draft Resolutions will be posted with an Announcement on iau.org in June 2021.

In addition, there will be a pre-session before each of the Business Sessions, with a lively mix of invited short talks by junior and senior prize winners, Meet the IAU Offices presentations, and highlights from our top-level working groups. These will take place from 13:30 to 14:50 CEST on Monday 23 August and Thursday 26 August 2021 and they will aim to create a stimulating environment that is more similar to an IAU General Assembly under normal circumstances. The detailed programme of these events will be published closer to the time. We encourage all IAU members to put these dates in their diaries.

More information

The IAU is the international astronomical organisation that brings together more than 12 000 active professional astronomers from more than 100 countries worldwide. Its mission is to promote and safeguard astronomy in all its aspects, including research, communication, education and development, through international cooperation. The IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on them. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world's largest professional body for astronomers.

Contacts

Maria Teresa Lago
General Secretary
Paris, France
Tel: +33 1 43 25 83 58
Email: IAU_GS_2018@iap.fr 

Ewine van Dishoeck
President of the IAU
Email: ewine@strw.leidenuniv.nl 

Lars Lindberg Christensen
IAU Press Officer
Cell: +49 173 38 72 621
Email: lars@eso.org