The International Astronomical Union (IAU) Commission C2 — Communicating Astronomy with the Public (CAP) and the IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO) are now accepting submissions to host the 2028 edition of the Communicating Astronomy with the Public (CAP) Conference. These events are held at least every two years, and provide an opportunity for individuals working in science communication, as well as professional and amateur astronomers, to exchange ideas and best practices.
The call to host CAP 2028 is now open and is composed of two main steps:
1. Submit a Letter of Intent (LoI) via this form
2. Prospective hosts, approved on the basis of the above, submit an invited full proposal
The deadline to submit the Letter of Intent to host the 2028 CAP Conference is extended to 03 November 2025.
On our website, you can also find out how to become a CAP Conference host and read details like governing principles, responsibilities and various other relevant aspects to be known / covered by a host, before applying.
Important dates:
20 October, 2025: original deadline to bid to host the 2028 CAP Conference
03 November, 2025: Extended deadline to submit the Letter of Intent to host the 2028 CAP Conference
05 November, 2025: Evaluation of LoIs starts
25 November, 2025: Communication of the results of the LoI selection process
02 March 15 February, 2026: Extended deadline for full proposals
29 May, 2026: Public Announcement of the succeeding bid during CAP2026
The 2026 edition of the CAP Conference will be held from 25 to 29 May, 2026, in Yerevan, Armenia and online. Under the theme of “Democratising Astronomy Communication in the era of accessible Artificial Intelligence”, the Scientific Organising Committee warmly invites the community to join the event in Yerevan and online.
More Information:
The International Astronomical Union ( IAU ) is the international astronomical organisation that brings together more than 12,000 active professional astronomers from more than 100 countries worldwide. Its mission is to promote and preserve all aspects of astronomy, including research, communication, education and development, through international cooperation. The IAU also serves as the internationally recognised authority for assigning designations to celestial bodies and the surface features on them. Founded in 1919, the IAU is the world’s largest professional body for astronomers.
The IAU Commission C2 is a body of the IAU that convenes the astronomy communication community and seeds initiatives to explore new ways to communicate astronomy with the public. Its mission is to: encourage and enable a much larger fraction of the astronomical community to take an active role in explaining what we do (and why) to our fellow citizens; act as an international, impartial coordinating entity that furthers the recognition of outreach and public communication on all levels in astronomy; encourage international collaborations on outreach and public communication; endorse standards, best practices and requirements for public communication.
The main goal of the IAU C2 CAP Conferences Working Group is to organise a Communicating Astronomy with the Public (CAP) Conference and aside from co-organising the call for hosting the CAP Conference, select the winning bid and act as the Scientific Advisory Committee of the conference, establishing the theme and sub-themes of the conference, evaluating the abstracts and supervising the selection of invited speakers.
The IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach (OAO) is a joint project of the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ). The mission of the OAO is to engage the public in astronomy through access to astronomical information and communication of the science of astronomy. This is implemented through a network of IAU National Outreach Coordinators (NOCs) and the IAU’s public engagement initiatives. The work of the OAO is about building bridges between the IAU and the global astronomy community of amateur astronomers, outreach professionals, educators, communicators, and the general public, and through international collaboration, to make the science of astronomy accessible to all.
Links
- Communicating Astronomy with the Public Official Website: https://capconferences.org/
- Communicating Astronomy with the Public 2026: https://capconferences.org/2026/
Contacts:
Samir Dhurde
CAP Conferences WG Co-Chair
Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, India
Tel: +91 8983336912
Email: samir@iucaa.in
Kelly Blumenthal
CAP Conferences WG Co-Chair & IAU OAO Director
IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach
Tel: +81-(0)422-34-3966
Email: blumenthal.kelly@oao.iau.org
Naomi Asabre Frimpong
CAP Conferences WG Co-Chair & IAU OAO Deputy Director
IAU Office for Astronomy Outreach
Email: naomi.asabrefrimpong@oao.iau.org
Avivah Yamani
CAP Conferences WG Co-Chair
Langitselatan
Email: avivah@langitselatan.com