Founded 28 January 1887 Type Non-profit association | President Patrick Baradeau | |
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Purpose To promote the development and practice of astronomy Headquarters 3, rue Beethoven, Paris 75016, France | ||
The Société Astronomique de France (SAF), the French astronomical society, is a non-profit association in the public interest organized under French law (la loi du 1er juillet 1901). Founded by astronomer Camille Flammarion in 1887, its purpose is to promote the development and practice of astronomy.
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Objective
Open to all, SAF includes both professional and amateur astronomers as members, from France and abroad. Its objective was defined at the time of its establishment as:
History
SAF was established by Camille Flammarion and a group of 11 persons on 28 January 1887 in Flammarion's apartment at 16 rue Cassini, 75014 Paris, close to the Paris Observatory. On 4 April 1887, the headquarters was established at the Hôtel des Sociétés Savantes, 28 rue Serpente, Paris 75006. On 17 October 1966, the headquarters moved to the Maison de la Chimie at 28 rue Saint-Dominique, Paris 75007. The headquarters are presently located at 3, rue Beethoven, Paris 75016.
Presidents
To date, the Society has had 49 presidents comprising many illustrious persons in astronomy and related fields. By profession, half of the presidents were astronomers (28), followed by physicists (11), and other professions (10) that includes engineers, a medical doctor, two generals, a prince, a writer, and an historian.
Activities and services
The Society publishes:
SAF organizes:
The monthly conferences are usually convened in the lecture hall of Agro ParisTech, and the other events are held at SAF headquarters in the 16th arrondissement of Paris.
On a regular basis, SAF offers the opportunity for the public to explore the night sky from two observatories:
The Society has a workshop on optics that also meets at the Observatoire de la Sorbonne.
SAF organizes the yearly astronomical meetings Rencontres Astro Ciel, which allows hundreds of astronomy enthusiasts to get together for two or three weeks under the starry sky of Provence.
The Society also has an extensive library that includes both historical and modern works, and is available for research and consultation.
Commissions
SAF's specialized commissions are:
L'Astronomie magazine
Today's journal l'Astronomie descends from a series of journals associated with SAF. The first one, published by Camille Flammarion, preceded the establishment of SAF by 3 years.
Awards
The society has offered the following awards over the years to its members and to notable personalities in the field of astronomy in France and abroad. Not all awards are given every year, and some have been discontinued.
Asteroid (4162) SAF
French astronomer André Patry of the Observatoire de Nice named Asteroid (4162) SAF in the society's honor after he discovered the body on 24 November 1940.