The global space community gathered in Sydney for the 76th International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2025), held from 29 September to 3 October 2025.
Organized by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF), the world’s largest space non-profit association with more than 600 members from 82 countries, the event was hosted by the Space Industry Association of Australia (SIAA) and co-hosted by the Australian Space Agency (ASA) and the New South Wales Government. This congress theme, “Sustainable Space: Resilient Earth”, echoed throughout a week of vibrant exchanges and collaborations.
Since its inception, the IAC has been the premier platform uniting space people across the globe, and this edition reconfirmed the IAC global standing: close to 8,000 delegates from 99 countries joined this year’s Congress.
The second edition of the IAF Global Space Leaders Summit united 40 heads of space agencies worldwide, becoming the largest gathering of space agencies leaders ever to take place in Australia. Key discussions centered on space exploration, Earth observation, security, and space diplomacy.
The 15th IAF International Meeting for Ministers and Members of Parliaments (MMoP) welcomed over 40 top-level policymakers, including 9 Ministers.
The week featured an extraordinary line-up of more than 3,500 speakers across over 40 plenary and panel sessions, alongside 200 technical sessions and a bustling exhibition with nearly 200 booths. Topics ranged from Indigenous knowledge in space, artificial intelligence applications, to future human long-duration spaceflight.
Across sessions, the theme “Sustainable Space: Resilient Earth” took center stage, expanding beyond planetary sustainability to include the sustainability of life beyond Earth. A unifying message emerged: the urgent need for interdisciplinary collaboration, knowledge sharing, and involvement of non-traditional sectors.
The IAC 2025 Public Day set new records, drawing over 11,000 participants, including 1,500 students. The highlights of the Public Day were the numerous events with astronauts – part of the 4th edition of the IAF International Astronauts Chapter. This inspiring event gathered more than 30 international astronauts.
The IAC 2025 celebrated outstanding achievements with the prestigious IAF World Space Award, bestowed to Jeff Bezos of Blue Origin and the Chang’e 6 Mission (team category). The IAF Excellence in International Cooperation Award was presented to Pascale Ehrenfreund, President of COSPAR and Research Professor of Space Policy and International Affairs at George Washington University.
At the Closing Ceremony, the IAF flag was ceremonially handed to the delegation of the Turkish Space Agency (TUA), leaded by its Chairman of The Board and President Yusuf Kıraç, host of IAC 2026 in Antalya, Türkiye.
The IAF General Assembly also selected Samarkand, Uzbekistan, as the Host city for the IAC 2028.
In a landmark leadership transition, Gabriella Arrigo, Director of International Affairs at the Italian Space Agency (ASI), was appointed as the new IAF President for a three-year term.
IAC 2025 was an undeniable success for Australia’s space sector. As Enrico Palermo, Head of the Australian Space Agency, proudly stated: “Today we forge Australia as a proud spacefaring nation.”
