It is now thirty-five years since the scientific journal Astronomy & Astrophysics (A&A) was
founded by the merging of six national journals from four European nations, namely France,
Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden; Belgium and the other Nordic countries, Denmark,
Finland and Norway, also participated. They were subsequently joined by five other western
European nations, namely Austria, Greece, Italy, Spain and Switzerland (Norway later
withdrew). A&A has no international legal status as such but is represented by the European
Southern Observatory (ESO), which also manages its financial transactions.
In the early nineteen-nineties, A&A with great foresight took an important step -– which the
European Union would follow more than a decade later - – by incorporating eastern European
countries into its sponsoring membership: the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and the
Slovak Republic; Estonia became a full member in 1998. A&A was now truly ``A European
Journal", as then stated on the front cover.
In the meantime, A&A grew in importance as a vehicle for world-wide dissemination of
astronomical research and an ever-increasing number of high-quality papers began streaming
into the A&A Editorial offices from non-European countries, as well as from other European
non-member countries. It became obvious to us that A&A no longer was merely a European
Journal and in 2001 we removed the ``A European Journal'' from the front cover.
Eventually, some of these non-European countries began approaching us with queries about
potential membership in A&A and in 2002 we admitted the first such country, Argentina, with
an observer status. Meanwhile, the Board intensified its study of the financial and
administrative consequences of a wider expansion including the admission of member
countries beyond Europe -– a special subcommittee was appointed.
The Board of Directors, at its meeting in Tartu, Estonia on 8 May 2004, made the important decision - – after a lengthy and thorough discussion -– that A&A will henceforth consider applications for sponsoring membership from any country in the world with well-documented active and excellent astronomical research. Each application will be carefully treated on a case-by-case basis. Subsequently, at this meeting, the Board admitted Argentina to full membership in A&A starting on 1 January 2005. In addition, three other applicants were admitted to observer status, namely Brazil, Chile and Portugal. The above-mentioned special Board subcommittee will continue its work and submit recommendations on the restructuring of the Board and its Executive Committee, a necessary consequence of the foreseen expansion.
Chairman, A&A Board of Directors