Use the tabs above for more information and to submit a proposal for a session.

Session Proposal Submission

In planning your session, please keep in mind the requirements for the different types of AAS Sessions. All Sessions, with the exception of Splinter Meetings and Workshops, are scheduled in 90-minute meeting blocks during the main conference and will not overlap with plenary or poster sessions. See more details at https://aas.org/meetings/aas-meeting-sessions-content

Special Sessions are open sessions intended for observatories, missions, facilities, and major projects to present and discuss scientific results and plans. Special Sessions can also be used for discussion of education, history, community, and state-of-the-profession topics. There is no mandated format, and Special Sessions may feature multiple speakers, a panel discussion, or other presentation formats. Contributed talks are listed in the main conference program. Special Sessions are run just like normal oral sessions and hence hybrid or virtual participation is currently not permitted for Special Sessions.

Splinter Meetings are scientific or programmatic meetings that do not fit the definition of a Special Session; e.g., they may be longer than 90 minutes, participation may be by invitation, or the session could include hybrid participants or speakers. Proposers not requiring these conditions should consider a Special Session or a summer Meeting-in-a-Meeting instead. Presentations in Splinter Meetings are not listed in the conference program. Hybrid or virtual participation is permitted for Splinter Meetings, but it must be managed by the proposers who must purchase an internet streaming package. There are additional fees associated with holding a Splinter Meeting that the organizers are responsible for; see https://aas.org/meetings/aas-meeting-sessions-content.

Workshops are short-format meetings, typically with a small group of participants that are focused on an educational, scientific, programmatic, or career topic. Workshops are typically collaborative and interactive, and can include training and professional development. Formal Working Group meetings for observatories and missions are usually scheduled as Workshops. For national meetings, Workshops are normally scheduled during the Saturday and Sunday preceding the main meeting, and participants are required to pay a workshop fee. Hybrid or virtual participation is currently not permitted for Workshops. There are fees associated with holding a Workshop that the organizers are responsible for; see https://aas.org/meetings/aas-meeting-sessions-content.

Town Halls are intended for federal agencies, national observatories, and major current and future missions and facilities to present policy information and to solicit feedback from their user communities. Hybrid or virtual participation may be proposed for Town Halls and must be approved by the Committee on Meetings, and it must be managed by the proposers who must purchase an internet streaming package. Current or future missions and facilities that wish to focus on scientific capabilities and results should select one of the other session categories to propose to (Special Sessions, Splinter Meetings, or Workshops), or plan on hosting events as Exhibitors in the Exhibit Hall.