The International Astronomical Union was founded in Brussels in the aftermath of the First World War, as part of an effort to restore international scientific cooperation. It brings together professional astronomers from around the world, and since 1922 its general assemblies have taken place every three years. The union is responsible for naming and numbering celestial bodies and their surface features, and it fixed the official boundaries of the eighty-eight constellations in the 1920s. In 2006 it adopted a new definition of a planet, which led to Pluto being reclassified as a dwarf planet. Its secretariat is based in Paris.
Before and after
- 1919Founding of Bank of Estonia
- from 1919 to 1946Founding of League of Nations
- 1919Construction of Tesco
- 1919Founding of International Labour Organization
- 1919Founding of International Astronomical Union
- 1 January 1919Birth of J. D. Salinger
- from 1919 to 1921White Terror
- from 5 January 1919 to 12 January 1919Spartacist uprising
- 6 January 1919Death of Theodore Roosevelt
More in Society, economy & sport
- 9 July 1916Founding of CONMEBOL
- 20 July 1924Founding of FIDE
- from 3 August 1936 to 9 August 1936Jesse Owens wins four gold medals in Berlin
- November 1938Kristallnacht
- 1940Katyn massacre
- 1941Rise of Vietnamese Independence League
The era
This moment belongs to the Modern era (1914 CE to 1945 CE), world wars and a changing world. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.