About ASIAA > Introduction

Introduction to ASIAA

Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics (ASIAA) is one of the 32 institutes and centers in Academia Sinica aspiring to be at the forefront of astronomical research. Devoting our efforts in specific directions, we have built up core groups in theoretical and experimental astrophysics and instrumentation. Research topics carried out at ASIAA range from solar system, star and planet formation, origin of life, to extra-galactic science, cosmology, and supermassive black holes. ASIAA also frequently hosts international workshops and conferences. The goal of ASIAA is to become an international research institute engaged in frontier projects, competing and collaborating with the leading research groups worldwide.

ASIAA is located in the Astronomy-Mathematics Building (ASMAB) on the campus of National Taiwan University (NTU), with a field office operating in Hawaii. Currently we have a staff over 170 including research fellows, research engineers and scientists, postdoctoral fellows, visiting scholars, assistants and supporting personnel.

Astronomy was one of the first few programs initiated when Academia Sinica was founded in Mainland China in 1928. Upon the recommendation of the Academician Chia-Chiao Lin, ASIAA Preparatory Office was established in 1993 after approval by the Academia Sinica Council. ASIAA was officially established as an institute in June 2010.

Directors
Typhoon Lee	Director	(1993/6/1～1994/5/31)
Chi Yuan	Director	(1994/6/1～1996/8/31)
Typhoon Lee	Director	(1996/9/1～1997/5/20)
Fred K.Y. Lo	Director	(1997/5/21～2002/8/31)
Paul T.P. Ho	Acting Director	(2002/9/1～2003/8/31)
Sun Kwok	Director	(2003/9/1～2005/8/31)
Paul T.P. Ho	Director	(2005/9/1～2010/5/31)
Paul T.P. Ho	Director	(2010/6/1～2014/8/31)
You-Hua Chu	Director	(2014/9/1～2020/8/31)
Shiang-Yu Wang	Acting Director	(2020/9/1 ~ 2021/8/31)
Ue-Li Pen	Director	(2021/9/1 till now)

ASIAA has established close cooperative relations with world-class academic institutions and observatories, and is engaged in the most advanced astronomical research with many top universities in Taiwan. The current main projects and work priorities include:

Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array-Taiwan (ALMA-T)
Very Long Baseline Interferometer (VLBI)/GreenLand Telescope (GLT)
Hyper Suprime-Cam (HSC) & Prime Focus Spectrograph (PFS)
Theoretical Astrophysics
Trans-Neptunian Automated Occultation Survey (TAOS II)
Submillimeter Array (SMA)
Optical and Infrared Astronomy (OIR Astronomy)
East Asian Core Observatories Association (EACOA) & East Asian Observatory (EAO)
Bustling Universe Radio Survey Telescope in Taiwan (BURSTT)
Astronomy Education and Public Outreach (EPO)