[ASA] Update | 2026–35 Decadal Plan for Australian Astronomy

[Meaghan Dzundza]

Dear Australian astronomy community,

I am writing to provide a short update on progress we have made towards the 2026–35 Decadal Plan for Australian Astronomy.

The Astronomy Working Group Chairs are now meeting each month, to enable smooth collaboration between the different working groups. You will have hopefully seen town hall meetings being announced from the various working groups via the ASA exploder. We hope to have a few in-person options in May, and shortly an online survey will be launched - it's vital we hear from the whole community in this survey so please keep an eye out for this in the coming week or so. We are also organising slack channels for each of the working groups, as another avenue for feedback.

We are happy to announce the launch of our dedicated webpage<https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/zfwECBNqjlCPV96ERIzwYcI?domain=science.org.au>, which will serve as a central hub for sharing progress, insights, and fostering collaborations that will guide the Australian astronomical community. This platform will enable us to keep you informed about the latest developments and as a repository for documents produced for the development of the decadal plan.

In other news, we are pleased to welcome the following new members to the National Committee for Astronomy:

Professor Richard McDermid<https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/SfpeCD1vlpTjBKvgJi5q98W?domain=researchers.mq.edu.au>:

Professor Richard McDermid is the newest member of our committee. Professor  McDermid serves as the Director of the Macquarie University Astrophysics and Space Technologies Research Centre. He also holds the position of leader at the Macquarie Node of the Australian Research Council (ARC) Centre of Excellence for All-Sky Astrophysics in 3 Dimensions (ASTRO 3D). He leads an active research group that has made significant contributions to the field by pioneering the integration of orbital dynamical models with chemical and age information from stellar populations. He was also honored as the leading national research contributor for astronomy in The Australian’s Research Awards 2023. With over 20 years of experience in combining astronomical research with instrumentation development for major optical telescopes, Professor McDermid brings a wealth of expertise to our committee.

Professor Michele Trenti<https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/E_gECE8wmrt1WJ9R0tpK-g1?domain=findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au>

Professor Michele Trenti is the newest member of our committee. Professor Trenti is a distinguished astrophysicist renowned for his groundbreaking contributions to the study of stars and galaxies in the infancy of the Universe. Professor Trenti has been awarded approximately three months of observing time on the Hubble Space Telescope, placing him among the top 10 users since 2001. His research interests span theoretical modeling, computer simulations of galaxy formation, and the dynamics of self-gravitating stellar systems such as globular clusters. He serves as the Director of the Melbourne Space Laboratory and Principal Investigator of the SpIRIT satellite, funded by the Australian Space Agency International Space Investment: Expand Capability scheme. Dr. Trenti holds the position of Professor at the University of Melbourne, where he continues to inspire and educate the next generation of scientists.

Dr Tayyaba Zafar<https://url.au.m.mimecastprotect.com/s/VTWpCGv0oyCWJpYjOCQIXvD?domain=researchers.mq.edu.au>

Dr. Tayyaba Zafar is the newest EMCR member of our committee. Dr Zafar is a senior Lecturer at the School of Mathematical and Physical Sciences and an astronomer at the Astrophysics and Space Technologies Research Centre, who specialises in studying dust, gas, and metals in the interstellar media of distant galaxies. She collaborates with the astronomical community to define groundbreaking science for upcoming telescope instruments worldwide.

Please join us in extending a warm welcome to all the newest members of the committee. Thankyou to the members who's term came to an end this year - Andrew Cole, Tim Bedding and Katie Auchettl, we really appreciate your contributions to the NCA.

cheers,
Virginia


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