National Astronomy Meeting

National Astronomy Meeting
Simon White addressing the 2012 National Astronomy Meeting
GenreAcademic conference
FrequencyAnnual
VenueVaries, usually within the British Isles
Years active76
Inaugurated1948 (1948)
Previous eventJuly 2023, Cardiff University
Next event2024, University of Hull
Participantsapprox. 600
ActivityAstronomy, solar physics and related fields
Organised byRoyal Astronomical Society
Websitewww.ras.org.uk/events-and-meetings/ras-meetings

The National Astronomy Meeting (NAM) is an annual scientific conference of astronomers, usually held in the British Isles. It is sponsored and coordinated by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), and functions as the primary annual meeting of the society. NAM is one of the largest professional astronomy conferences in Europe,[1] with typically around 600 delegates attending.[2]

Each NAM includes a variety of plenary and parallel sessions discussing the latest research in astronomy (and related fields), public lectures, community sessions and a press office to promote the results presented at the meeting to journalists and the public.[2]

The meetings began when the RAS decided to hold some of its scientific meetings outside London, where the society is based. Known as the 'out of town' meetings, the first was held in 1948. The meetings ran in most years until 1966, when they were discontinued.[note 1]

The RAS resumed the series in 1976.[3] An expanded format was adopted from 1992 onwards; to reflect this broader remit the name was changed to the 'National Astronomy Meeting'.[4] Since 1976 the meeting has been held every year, except in 2000 when the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union was held in the UK instead,[3] and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.[5]

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