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A historic XXXII IAU General Assembly for a lasting African legacy

Nature Astronomy volume 9, pages 2–5 (2025)Cite this article

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The XXXII IAU General Assembly, held for the first time on the African continent from 6–15 August 2024, marked a historic milestone in the global astronomy community. Driven by a bold vision, the event highlighted Africa's growing scientific capacity, and embodied the African spirit of Ubuntu, emphasizing accessibility, impact, and sustainability.

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Fig. 1: Representative images from the IAU GA.

Bradley Urion (all panels except g); Vanessa Moss (panel g)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. International Astronomical Union Office of Astronomy for Development, Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa

    Kevin Govender, Charles M. Takalana, Ramasamy Venugopal, Joyful E. Mdhluli, Andrea Girolamodibari & Dominic G. Vertue

  2. South African Astronomical Observatory, Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa

    Kevin Govender, Charles M. Takalana, Ramasamy Venugopal, Joyful E. Mdhluli, Hannes Breytenbach, Daniel C. Cunnama, Duduzile V. Kubheka, Moleboge Lekoloane & Dominic G. Vertue

  3. Stellenbosch University, Matieland, Stellenbosch, South Africa

    Charles M. Takalana & Duduzile V. Kubheka

  4. African Astronomical Society, Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa

    Charles M. Takalana, Sally A. Macfarlane, Duduzile V. Kubheka & Moleboge Lekoloane

  5. International Science Council, Paris, France

    Vanessa McBride

  6. CSIRO Space & Astronomy, Epping, New South Wales, Australia

    Vanessa A. Moss

  7. Sydney Institute for Astronomy, School of Physics, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Vanessa A. Moss

  8. International Astronomical Union Office for Astronomy Outreach, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo, Japan

    Kelly Blumenthal

  9. Department of Mathematical Sciences, University of South Africa, Florida Park, Roodepoort, South Africa

    James O. Chibueze

  10. Inter-University Institute for Data Intensive Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of the Western Cape, Bellville, South Africa

    Sally A. Macfarlane

  11. Oukaimeden Observatory, Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco

    Zouhair Benkhaldoun

  12. Laboratory of High Energy Physics and Astrophysics, Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco

    Zouhair Benkhaldoun

  13. Freelance, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    Glen Rees

  14. University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, Cape Town, South Africa

    Alick J. Le Jeune, Sumari Barocci-Faul & Hannes Breytenbach

  15. South African Radio Astronomy Observatory, Mowbray, Cape Town, South Africa

    Anton Binneman & Mthuthuzeli Zamxaka

  16. Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia

    Rika Kobayashi

  17. BRICS Astronomy, Observatory, Cape Town, South Africa

    Duduzile V. Kubheka & Moleboge Lekoloane

  18. Copperbelt University, Kitwe, Zambia

    Prospery C. Simpemba

  19. Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Cape Town, South Africa

    Lara van Zyl

Authors
  1. Kevin Govender
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  2. Charles M. Takalana
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  3. Vanessa McBride
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  4. Ramasamy Venugopal
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  5. Vanessa A. Moss
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  6. Kelly Blumenthal
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  7. Joyful E. Mdhluli
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  8. James O. Chibueze
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  9. Sally A. Macfarlane
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  10. Zouhair Benkhaldoun
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  11. Glen Rees
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  12. Alick J. Le Jeune
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  13. Sumari Barocci-Faul
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  14. Anton Binneman
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  15. Hannes Breytenbach
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  16. Daniel C. Cunnama
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  17. Andrea Girolamodibari
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  18. Rika Kobayashi
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  19. Duduzile V. Kubheka
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  20. Moleboge Lekoloane
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  21. Prospery C. Simpemba
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  22. Dominic G. Vertue
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  23. Lara van Zyl
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  24. Mthuthuzeli Zamxaka
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kevin Govender.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Govender, K., Takalana, C.M., McBride, V. et al. A historic XXXII IAU General Assembly for a lasting African legacy. Nat Astron 9, 2–5 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-024-02447-w

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