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(As approved at the Annual General Meeting of 1977 March 11, and as amended and added to at subsequent Annual General Meetings. This listing last updated following the AGM of 2010 May 14.)
The Charter of the Royal Astronomical Society can be found here.
SECTION I. The Object of the Society
1. The object of THE ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY shall be the encouragement and promotion of Astronomy,Solar-System Sciences, Geophysics and closely related branches of science.
SECTION II. The Constitution of the Society
2. The Society shall consist of Fellows and Associates(also known as Honorary Fellows), collectively referred to as Members, who shall have the privileges and obligations set out in the following Bye-laws.
3. The control of the affairs of the Society shall rest with the General Meeting of Fellows. Subject to that control the direction and management shall rest with the Council.
SECTION III. General Meetings
4. The Council may at any time call a General Meeting of Fellows to discuss and determine questions relating to the affairs of the Society; and to enact, alter and repeal Bye-laws.
5. Any twenty Fellows, not being members of the Council, may recommend to the Council by a written communication addressed to one of the Secretaries, the adoption or rejection of any measure, including the enactment, alteration and repeal of Bye-laws. Such recommendation shall be considered by the Council not later than at its next regular meeting and, if the outcome be not satisfactory to the Fellows proposing the recommendation, the Council shall, if required by them, bring forward the same for the opinion of the Society at large, at a General Meeting to be held within two months of that requisition.
6. Notice of the place and time of any General Meeting, and of the business for which it is summoned, shall be despatched to Fellows at least two weeks before the date of such Meeting; and no business shall be transacted at such Meeting except that which has been so notified.
7. At a General Meeting twenty-four Fellows shall constitute a quorum. Except as specified in subsequent Bye-laws, any question in the Meeting shall be decided by a majority vote, by show of hand or by ballot should any six Fellows present so desire.
8. The President, or other Fellow in the Chair, may accept amendments to proposals notified under Bye-law 6 if such amendments do not, in the opinion of the Chair, materially vary the intention of the proposals.
9. If the whole of the business cannot be completed on the day appointed the Meeting may adjourn to another day without the necessity of a fresh summons.
SECTION IV. The Annual General Meeting
10. A General Meeting of Fellows will be held annually, normally on the second Friday in May, to discuss and determine matters relating to the affairs of the Society, including the Trustees Report; reports of the professional auditors; appointment of professional auditors; election of Council; Membership Subscriptions for the ensuing year; and, as deemed necessary, the enactment, revision, and repeal of Bye-laws. In addition, two or more Fellows, not being members of Council, chosen by the Society at each General Meeting as Honorary Auditors, will deliver a personal report on the resources, goals, structures and activities of the Society
11. The President shall appoint two or more Fellows as Scrutineers to superintend the ballot for the elections to the Council and to report the result to the Meeting .
SECTION V. The Council
12. The Council shall consist of a President, a Treasurer and three Secretaries (collectively referred to as the Officers), together with four Vice-Presidents and twelve Councillors, all being Fellows.
13. The Council shall hold six meetings between October and July. The Secretaries may call such extra meetings as they consider necessary for the conduct of the Society's, business. The President, or any three members of the Council, may require the Secretaries to call an extra meeting in which case it shall be held within four weeks. Notice of the place and time of each meeting shall be despatched to each member at least one week before the date of such meeting. Meetings shall be at the Society's premises unless the Council decides otherwise.
14. At a meeting of the Council five members shall constitute a quorum; however, when such a meeting is for the sole purpose of sealing approved documents three members including two of the Officers shall constitute a quorum.
15. Except as otherwise directed in these Bye-laws, any question in the Council shall be decided by a majority vote, by show of hand or by ballot should any two members present so desire.
16. The determination of the Council on any question not requiring immediate decision shall, at the request of any two members present, be deferred to the next regular meeting, but the decision shall not be further deferred save by desire of a majority of members then present.
17. The Council shall draw up an Annual Report on the state of the Society to be presented to Fellows at the Annual General Meeting.
18. The Council has the power of appointing, employing, remunerating and dismissing the Executive Secretary and other such staff as it considers necessary for the conduct of the Society's business.
19. Minutes of the proceedings of the Council shall be taken during the meetings and entered into the Minute-book. The accuracy of such Minutes shall be confirmed at the next meeting (other than one for the sole purpose of sealing documents), and the Minutes shall then be signed by the President or other Fellow in the Chair.
SECTION VI. The Election of the Council
20.Members of the Council shall be elected by ballot at the Annual General Meeting, for the following normal and maximum terms of office: President, two years; Vice Presidents, two years; Treasurer and Secretaries, Five years; Councillors, three years A Fellow who has completed a normal term of office as President, as a Vice-President, or as a Councillor, shall be ineligible for election to that office until the expiry of one year from the termination of office. The Treasurer and Secretaries may be re-elected for a second, consecutive, term of office, but shall then be ineligible for that office until the expiry of one year from the termination of office. Each year there shall be an election for at least two Vice-Presidents and at least four Councillors. A new Council shall contain at least four Fellows who have not served on the previous Council.
21. If a vacancy occurs between Annual General Meetings the Council may fill the vacancy until the next Annual General Meeting, subject to the requirements of Bye-law 28. A replacement shall then be elected. For the offices of President, Treasurer or Secretary, the replacement shall be elected for the full term of office. For the positions of Vice-President or Councillor, the replacement shall be elected to complete only the remainder of the normal term of office, as set out in Bye-law 20.
22. A member of the Council who resigns before completing a full term of office shall be deemed to have completed that term of office and shall be subject to the restrictions of Bye-law 20.
23. Any two or more Fellows may nominate any other eligible Fellow as President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary or Councillor, when a vacancy exists. Each such nomination that is accompanied by a statement that the nominee is prepared to serve if elected, and is received in writing by the Society before noon on the last Friday in November, shall be included on the Balloting List, unless withdrawn. Any fellow, in addition, when a vacancy exists for the position of President, may suggest candidates for the consideration of Council, provided they are received before noon on the last Friday in November
24. Vacancies which will arise at the Annual General Meeting shall be announced at least six weeks before the first Friday in February
25. At its regular meeting in February the Council shall prepare the Balloting List, according to the requirements of Bye-laws 20, 22, 26, 27 and 28, including nominations made under Bye-law 23 and nominations made by Council members at the meeting.
26. No Fellow shall accept nomination for election to more than one position on a given Balloting List.
27. The Balloting List shall contain, alphabetically under each office, the names of those nominated and not subsequently withdrawn. To the name of each nominee for the position of an Officer or a Vice-President shall be attached the words "The Council" or the names of the nominators; to the names of each nominee for the position of Councillor shall be attached the names of the nominators. To each name shall be attached the letter A if that nominee's major scientific interest is in astronomy (excluding planetary science), or the letter G if in geophysics or planetary science. Such designation shall be decided upon in consultation with the nominee.
28. The Council shall include two Vice-Presidents nominated A, two Vice-Presidents nominated G, one Secretary nominated A, one Secretary nominated G, at least four Councillors nominated A and at least four Councillors nominated G.
29. The Balloting List shall be made available to Fellows as soon as practicable, together with a statement of the procedure for the ballot.
30. Fellows may vote for fewer, but not more, candidates than are required for any office. No Fellow may submit more than one Balloting List. Scrutineers will verify and count the ballot in accordance with the standing order regulating the conduct of the ballot.
31. Election as President and Treasurer shall be by simple majority. To the places as Vice-President, Secretary and Councillor shall be elected a sufficient number of Fellows to satisfy the requirements of Bye-law 12. Election shall be by simple majority, subject to the requirements of Bye-law 28. In particular, of the two Vice-Presidents elected for a two-year term of office, one shall be in Category A and one in Category G, and of the four Councillors elected each year for a three year term of office, at least one shall be in Category A and at least one shall be in Category G. Once these requirements are satisfied the places shall be allocated by simple majority, with any partial terms of office as Vice- President or Councillor being assigned to those elected with the smallest number of votes. When necessary a tie shall be resolved by casting lots.
SECTION VII. The Election and Obligations of Fellows
32. Anyone over the age of eighteen, not being an employee of the Society, shall be eligible for proposal as a Fellow.
33. A candidate for Fellowship will be considered by Council for election if either of the following is satisfied:
(i). The candidate has been proposed and recommended, according to Form No. 1 of the Appendix, by at least two Fellows or Associates, one of whom must certify personal knowledge of the candidate's suitability.
(ii). The candidate has submitted an application including a brief statement of his/her interest in astronomy or geophysics together with supporting information. Council will decide the applicant's suitability for election. On receipt by the Society all applications will be posted to the members part of the web site for a minimum period of two weeks to provide an opportunity for Fellows to draw the attention of Council to any relevant information about the candidate.
34. The election of Fellows shall rest with Council and shall be considered at the first opportunity after the conditions specified in Bye-law 33 are met.
35. The Secretaries shall send to a Fellow, as soon as practicable after election, a formal notification of election; notification of the amounts of the current Membership Subscription; and other such papers as may be appropriate. 36. An election shall be void if, without reason acceptable to the Council, a Fellow fails, within two months of being informed of election, to pay the first Membership Subscription. 37. A Fellow shall pay an annual Membership Subscription (formerly known as an Annual Contribution), in amounts and in a manner decided under Bye-law 52. 38. A Fellow who has attained the age of 65 by 2003 January 1 and who has paid Membership Subscriptions for the previous fifteen years shall be exempted from further Membership Subscriptions on application in writing before 2003 January 1. Thereafter, a Fellow who has attained the age of 65 and who has paid Membership Subscriptions for the previous fifteen years shall be eligible, upon application to the Treasurer in writing, for a concessionary rate of Membership Subscription, decided under Bye-law 52.
39. A Fellow who desires to resign shall signify this in writing.
40. Whenever a Fellow is three months in arrear in the payment of the Membership Subscription, the Treasurer shall send a letter, according to the Form No. 3 of the Appendix, to the last known address of the Fellow. Should the arrears be still unpaid after a total period of twelve months, and no reason acceptable to the Council be given for non-payment, the person concerned shall cease to be a Fellow of the Society
SECTION VIII. The Election and Privileges of Associates
41. The Society may honour any foreign national based overseas, eminent in the fields of astronomy, solar-system sciences, geophysics or closely related branches of science, by election as an Associate of the Society, providing they are not a Fellow at the time of election. The election shall rest with the Council
42. The Secretaries shall inform an Associate, as soon as practicable after election, of the honour conferred by the Society and shall send a Diploma drawn up in the form prescribed by the Council.
43. An Associate shall have all the privileges of Fellowship except those of being eligible to hold office in the Society and to vote at General Meetings.
SECTION IX.
44 to 51. Reserved
SECTION X. The Admission Fee and Annual Contributions
52. Each year the Council shall make recommendations to the Annual General Meeting in respect of the amounts, for the ensuing year, of the Membership Subscriptions for Fellows, including any concessions or additional fees. The Meeting shall decide upon these amounts, and the manner in which they may be paid, subject to possible revision by a subsequent General Meeting. Notification of the amounts shall be despatched to Fellows by the end of November.
SECTION XI. The Expulsion of Members
53. Whenever there may appear cause for the expulsion of any Member from the Society, the Council may call a General Meeting for that purpose; and, if at least three-fourths of those voting agree by ballot that such Member be expelled, the President, or other Fellow in the Chair, shall declare the same accordingly.
SECTION XII. Ordinary and Additional Meetings
54. An Ordinary Meeting of the Society shall be held on the second Friday in each month from October to May; but, if the second Friday is Good Friday or a public holiday, the meeting shall be held instead on the Wednesday preceding. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Council may decide that a particular Ordinary Meeting shall not be held or shall be held on a different date. Council shall inform members of any such change at least two months before the scheduled date.
55. The Council may arrange Additional Meetings.
56. The business of the Ordinary and Additional Meetings shall be the reading of papers communicated to the Society and the discussion of matters relating to astronomy and geophysics; it shall not include discussion of the Bye-laws or the management of the Society.
57. A Fellow shall have the privilege of introducing a visitor at Ordinary and Additional Meetings, on writing the name in the book provided for the purpose. The Council may also issue invitations.
SECTION XIII. Committees
58. Committees for forwarding the object of the Society may be appointed by the Council, to whom their reports shall be submitted. The Council may request persons not Members of the Society to serve on these Committees; such persons shall have an equal voice with the other members of the Committees.
SECTION XIV. The President and Vice-Presidents
59. The duty of the President shall be: to take the Chair at the Ordinary and General Meetings of the Society, and at the meetings of the Council; to regulate their proceedings; to state and put questions according to the sense and intention of the meeting; to carry into effect the Bye-laws of the Society.
60. In the absence of the President, one of the Vice-Presidents, or in their absence the Treasurer, or one of the Councillors, shall take the Chair and conduct the business of the meeting; in case of the absence of all these, the meeting may elect any Fellow present to take the Chair.
61. The President, or other Fellow in the Chair, shall not vote on any question brought before the meeting except where a casting vote is necessary to decide the question, in which case such casting vote shall be given.
SECTION XV. The Treasurer
62. The Treasurer shall receive, on behalf of and for the use of the Society, all sums of money due to the Society; and, out of those funds, pay all sums due by the Society.
63. The Treasurer shall keep a regular account of receipts and payments in the manner which seems most proper to the Council, which is responsible for the management of the funds of the Society.
64. The Council may set a limit on sums of money which may be paid by the Treasurer without express approval by the Council. No sums of money in excess of such limit shall be paid without a written order of the Council, signed by the President or other Fellow in the Chair.
65. The accounts of the Society shall be inspected annually by professional auditors.
66. A Treasurer whom the Council has deemed to have grossly neglected or mis-conducted his or her duties shall be required to resign.
SECTION XVI. The Secretaries
67. The duty of the Secretaries shall be to attend all Ordinary and General Meetings of the Society, and all meetings of the Council, and to ensure that Minutes of the proceedings are taken.
68. The Secretaries shall have the superintendence of all persons in the employment of the Society, and the management of the correspondence of the Society and of the Council. But the Executive Secretary shall act under the direction of the Treasurer in respect of those duties relating to the finances of the Society.
69. A Secretary whom the Council has deemed to have grossly neglected or mis-conducted his or her duties shall be required to resign.
SECTION XVII. Councillors
70. A member of the Council who, after one year of service, has been absent from half or more of the Council Meetings which he or she has been eligible to attend since election, without reason which, in the Council's opinion, is adequate and unlikely to operate for the remainder of his or her term of office, shall be deemed to have resigned.
SECTION XVIII. The Executive Secretary
71. The Executive Secretary, being the chief assistant employed by the Society, shall have responsibility for the day-to-day conduct of the Society's affairs, staff and premises, under the direction of the Society's Officers and the control of the Council.
SECTION XIX. The Society's Publications
72. The number, form and frequency of issue of the Society's publications shall be determined by the Council. Papers communicated to the Society may be published, with other such material as the Council may authorise, in these publications.
73. The Council may appoint Fellows to act as Honorary Editors of the Society's publications. Such editors shall then act on behalf of the Council and in conjunction with the Secretaries in regard to the content and presentation of the publications.
74. The copyright of a paper communicated to the Society shall, in consequence of such communication, be considered as the property of the Society unless there shall have been previous engagement with the author to the contrary; the Society may publish the paper in any way and at any time that it thinks proper. However, should the Society refuse, or neglect within a year, to publish the paper, the copyright shall revert to the author.
SECTION XX. The Gold Medals
75. The Society may recognise outstanding contributions to Astronomy and Geophysics by the award of Gold Medals: in any one year, not more than one in the field of astronomy (excluding planetary science) and not more than one in the field of geophysics and planetary science.
76. It shall be the duty of the Council to consider annually the propriety of such awards and, if it thinks fit, to decide upon the awards. No Gold Medal shall be awarded unless at least three-fourths of the members of the Council present at the appropriate meeting agree thereto.
77. Notwithstanding Bye-law 75, in cases where two or more persons have been jointly concerned in a particular contribution, or have been the simultaneous but independent authors of an outstanding contribution, a Gold Medal may be awarded to these persons jointly. In such a case, an impression of the Gold Medal shall be given to each of the joint recipients.
SECTION XXI. Other Medals
78.The Society may recognise achievement in fields of interest by the award of the
Eddington Medal
(for investigations of outstanding merit in theoretical astrophysics);
Herschel Medal
(for investigations of outstanding merit in observational astrophysics);
Price Medal
(for investigations of outstanding merit in solid-earth geophysics, oceanography, or planetary sciences);
Chapman Medal
(for investigations of outstanding merit in solar-terrestrial physics including geomagnetism and aeronomy).
Jackson-Gwilt Medal
( for the invention, improvement, or development of astronomical instrumentation or techniques; for achievement in observational astronomy; or for achievement in research into the history of astronomy)
Each of these medals is to be available for award annually.
79. The Eddington, Herschel, Chapman, Price, and Jackson-Gwilt medals may each be awarded for single investigations of sufficient merit (such that younger scientists may be candidates for these awards). The procedure for making the awards shall follow, mutatis mutandis, that set out in Bye-Laws 76 and 77 for the award of the Gold Medals.
SECTION XXII. Other Awards
80. The Society may recognize individuals who have made a particularly noteworthy contribution to Astronomy and Geophysics at an early stage of their research career by the award of
Fowler Prizes
The prizes will be cash awards, with not more than one award in any one year in each of the fields of Astronomy (including astroparticle physics and astrobiology) and Geophysics (including Solar-Terrestrial Physics and Planetary Sciences).
RAS Awards for Service to Astronomy and Geophysics
These honour individuals who, through outstanding or exceptional work, have promoted, facilitated or encouraged the sciences of astronomy or geophysics and developed their role in the life of the nation but whose achievement does not fall within the criteria of the Society's other awards. The Award, in the form of an appropriate gift, will be made from time to time, without a fixed interval, although nominations will be sought annually.
Group Achievement Awards
recognize outstanding achievement by large consortia in any branch of astronomy or geophysics where it is not appropriate to present, jointly, one of the other awards of the Society. The Award, in the form of an inscribed certificate presented to each member of the consortium, will be made from time to time, although nominations will be sought annually.
SECTION XXIII. The Common Seal and Deeds
81. The Common Seal of the Society is a representation of Herschel's telescope with the motto Quicquid nitet notandum, surrounded by the words and figures Royal Astronomical Society 1820.
82. It shall be the duty of the President and the Executive Secretary to be responsible for the safe custody of the Charter, the Common Seal and the Deeds of the Society.
83. The Common Seal shall not normally be affixed to any Deed or Writing except at a meeting of the Council and by the Council's authority, but, by order of the President, when urgency demands and a special meeting of Council cannot be arranged, a Deed or Writing may be sealed in the intervals between the meetings of the Council. Every Deed or Writing to which the Common Seal of the Society is affixed shall be signed by two Officers or by two persons approved by Council for this purpose, and the particulars of the same entered in the Minute Book.
SECTION XXIV. The Property of the Society
84. The whole of the funded property of the Society shall be placed in the name of "The Royal Astronomical Society". Subject to receiving the prior written consent of the Charity Commissioners the Society shall not make any dividend, gift, division, or bonus in money unto or between any of its Members.
85. A Fellow may at any reasonable time consult the Society's Minute-books and the Library, and may borrow books from the Library in accordance with the regulations annexed to these Bye-laws. Anyone wishing to consult any other material belonging to the Society must have the written authorisation of one of the Secretaries, or such deputy as may be appointed by the Council.
SECTION XXV. Donations and Bequests
86. Every person who shall contribute to the property or General Funds of the Society shall be recorded as a Benefactor.
SECTION XXVI. Emergency Powers
87. If, through events outside the control of the Society, circumstances arise in which it is impracticable to comply with the provisions of these Bye-laws or to convene a General Meeting at which proposals to amend or suspend the Bye-laws could be considered, the Council shall take such action as it considers necessary. Such action shall not be contrary to the general scope, true intent and meaning of the Charter, and shall be reported to a General Meeting convened immediately this becomes practicable. If it is impracticable for the Council as such to act, either by meeting or by correspondence, the authority for such action as may be necessary shall be, in order: the Officers collectively; the President; one or more of the Secretaries; the Treasurer; one or more of the Vice- Presidents; and one or more of the Councillors.
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