Adriaan Blaauw founding father of Astronomy & Astrophysics

Adriaan Blaauw founding father of Astronomy & Astrophysics

BN Groningen 2014

Birgitta Nordström

(Chairperson of the Board Directors of A&A) Niels Bohr Institute

Copenhagen University Denmark

The journal Astronomy & Astrophysics

BN Groningen 2014

Why a new journal?

A new journal is born.

8 April 1968

A&A has several fathers Today

Success, impact factor

Why a new journal?

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•  Annales d'Astrophysique (Ann.d Ap)(1938)

•  Bulletin Astronomique (1884)

•  Bulletin of the Astron. Inst. of the Netherlands (BAN, 1921)

•  Journal des Observateurs (1915)

•  Monthly Notices of the Royal Astron. Society (MN1895)

•  Zeitschrift für Astrophysik (ZfAp) (1930)

•  Arkiv för Astronomi (1903, 1949)

•  Czechoslovakia, Italy etc.

Milestone 46 years ago today

BN Groninen 8 April 2014

”On 8 April 1968 a number of leading astronomers from

Belgium, Denmark, France, the Federal Republic of Germany

and the Netherlands met in Leiden to prepare a possible merging of some of the principal existing journals.” (BAN, Ann d’Astrophysique, Z. Astrophysik)

Convened by S.R. Pottasch

”The most important mile-stone in creating a new journal” (Blaauw) First issue appeared on 1 January 1969

Now 46 years later, 564 issues have been published Now 20.000 pages/year (restricted)

A. Blaauw in Ann. Rev. AA 2004:

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“An item that gave me much satisfaction during my directorship was ESO's help in creating the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.

-The first initiatives had been taken by Stuart Pottasch, Anders Reiz, and Jean-Louis Steinberg, and in 1968

I succeeded in establishing a formal relation between ESO and the board of directors of the journal. Thus, ESO could offer its legal services for establishing the contract with the publisher (Blaauw 1975). We welcomed the first issue of A&A in January 1969. It was my pleasure to chair the board of directors from 1968 to 1979.”

and

and

5 Dec. 1968

First issue 1 Jan. 1969 First Chair of the Board of A&A

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Photo ESO ~ 1973

—  Diplomatic skills

—  Assoc. Editor of ApJ 1956 – 1957

A&A Board of Directors responsible for:

—  Science

—  Editorial process

ESO acts on behalf of the Board

— Contractual matters

— Legal matters

— Administration

Relation A&A and ESO modelled in1968

A&A has basically the same organization now as in 1968

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A&A is now modernizing the statutes BUT

keeping the basic organizational model from 1968 Formalizing working rules

The world around us has changed

Chairs of the Board of Directors

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Adriaan Blaauw 1968-1978 G. Contopoulos 1979-92 A. Medaer 1993-98

Aa. Sandqvist 1999-2004 G. Meynet 2005-2009

K. de Boer 2010

B. Nordström 2011-

Editors in Chief

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1969-72: S.R. Pottasch, J.L. Steinberg

Presently: T. Forveille (EiC), C. Bertout (ME), J. Alves (LEiC)

Sponsoring organisations of A&A 2014:

—  Argentina 2005 Asociación Argentina de Astronomia

—  Austria 1981 Astronomische Kommission der Oesterreichische

—  Akademie der Wissenschaften

—  Belgium 1969 Belgian National Committee for Astronomy

—  Brazil 2006 Sociedade Brasileira de Astronomia

—  Bulgaria 2009 Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

—  Chili 2006 Sociedad Chilena de Atronomia

—  Czech Republic 1992 Czech National Committee of the IAU

—  Croatia 2008 Ministry of Science, Education and Sport

—  Denmark 1969 Statens Naturvidenskabelige Forskningsraad

—  Estonia 1998 Estonian National Committee for Astronomy

—  Finland 1969 National Committee for Astronomy

—  France 1969 Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

Sponsoring org. cont.

—  Germany 1969 Rat Deutscher Sternwarten

—  Greece 1974 Greek National Committee for Astronomy

—  Hungary 1994 Hungarian Academy of Sciences

—  Italy 1972 Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche

—  Lithuania 2010 Lithuanian Astronomical Society

—  The Netherlands 1969 Nationaal Committee voor Astronomie

—  Poland 1993 Polish Academy of Sciences

—  Portugal 2006 Sociedade Portuguesa de Astronomia

—  Slovak Republic 1992 Slovak National Committee of the IAU

—  Spain 1988 Secr.Gen. de Politica Cientifica y Tecnologica

—  Sweden 1969 Vetenskapsraadet

—  Switzerland 1970 Swiss Academy of Sciences

B N / A A a r h u s U n i v . M a r c h 2 0 1

4

A&A Editors 4 April 2014

20.000 pages/year, Impact factor > 5

Astronomy & Astrophysics

BN A&A Pisa2014

References:

-  S.R. Pottasch: The history of A&A. Scientific Writing for Young Astronomers EAS Publ. Ser. 49, 23 (2011) -  A. Blaauw: Europhysics News, 6, p.3 (1975)

-  A. Blaauw: ESO Messenger 60,23 (1990) -  Pottasch: A&A Web page 1999

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