International Astronomical Union

In green member countries.

The International Astronomical Union (UAI, in French Union astronomique internationale or UAI, in English International Astronomical Union or IAU) is a group of the different national astronomical societies and constitutes the international decision-making body in the field of the definitions of names of planets and other celestial objects as well as the standards in astronomy. It was created in 1919 from the union of different organizations such as the Bureau International de l'Heure, the Carte du Ciel and the Solar Union. Its first president was Benjamin Baillaud. Its objective is to promote and coordinate international cooperation in astronomy and the development of nomenclature rules for different celestial bodies.

IAU working groups also include The Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (WGPSN), which establishes nomenclature for planetary bodies and astronomical naming conventions.

In 2015, the UAI had 12,450 individual members, mainly astronomy professionals with a doctoral degree, and 74 national members, that is, countries affiliated with the UAI. 84% of its members are male and 16% female members. The current president of the UAI is Ewine F. van Dishoeck (2018-2021) and the Portuguese astronomer Teresa Lago serves as Secretary General of the institution for the same three-year period.

Main subdisciplines

The UAI coordinates 9 divisions, 38 commissions and 45 working groups on different astronomical topics.

General Assemblies

The UAI General Assembly meets every three years. The encounters include:

Assembly	Year	Headquarters
I General Assembly of IAU	1922	Rome, Italy
II General Assembly of IAU	1925	Cambridge, United Kingdom
III General Assembly of IAU	1928	Leiden, Netherlands
IV General Assembly of IAU	1932	Cambridge, Estados Unidos
V UAI General Assembly	1935	Paris, France
VI General Assembly of IAU	1938	Stockholm, Sweden
VII General Assembly of IAU	1948	Zurich, Switzerland
VIII General Assembly of IAU	1952	Rome, Italy
IX UAI General Assembly	1955	Dublin, Ireland
X UAI General Assembly	1958	Moscow, Soviet Union
XI General Assembly of IAU	1961	Berkeley, United States
XII General Assembly of IAU	1964	Hamburg, Federal Republic of Germany
XIII UAI General Assembly	1967	Prague, Czechoslovakia
XIV General Assembly of IAU	1970	Brighton, United Kingdom
XV General Assembly of IAU	1973	Sydney, Australia
Extraordinary General Assembly of IAU1	1973	Warsaw, Poland
XVI General Assembly of IAU	1976	Grenoble, France
XVII General Assembly of IAU	1979	Montreal, Canada
XVIII General Assembly of the UAI	1982	Patras, Greece
XIX UAI General Assembly	1985	New Delhi, India
XX UAI General Assembly	1988	Baltimore, United States
XXI General Assembly of IAU	1991	Buenos Aires, Argentina
XXII General Assembly of IAU	1994	The Hague, Netherlands
XXIII General Assembly of IAU	1997	Kyoto, Japan
XXIV UAI General Assembly	2000	Manchester, United Kingdom
XXV UAI General Assembly	2003	Sydney, Australia
XXVI General Assembly of IAU	2006	Prague, Czech Republic
XXVII General Assembly of IAU	2009	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
XXVIII UAI General Assembly	2012	Beijing, China
XXIX UAI General Assembly	2015	Honolulu, United States
XXX General Assembly of IAU	2018	Vienna, Austria

¹ Held to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the birth of Nicholas Copernicus.