The Astrophysical Journal is devoted to recent developments, discoveries, and theories in astronomy and astrophysics. ApJ publications constitute significant new research that is directly relevant to astrophysical applications, whether based on observational results or on theoretical insights or modeling.
The Astrophysical Journal was founded in 1895 by University of Chicago astronomer George Ellery Hale, who was also instrumental in founding the AAS. The ApJ was to become the publication of a new branch of the field, astrophysics, that explored new physical laws with new instrumentation. Nobel Laureate S. Chandrasekhar was the last ApJ editor under the ownership of the University of Chicago. In 1971 the AAS assumed ownership. Mirroring the growth in all areas of astronomy and astrophysics during its long tenure, the ApJ is now a truly global journal that publishes over 3,000 articles per year.
Archival issues of The Astrophysical Journal going back to 1995 are freely available on IOPscience. Earlier issues from 1895-1995 are freely available on ADS.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) have partnered with IOP Publishing to create an exciting new collection of astronomy and astrophysics ebooks to further the AAS mission: "to enhance and share humanity's scientific understanding of the universe."
In keeping with our mission, the entire AAS journals portfolio was made freely accessible as of 1 January 2022. Read more.
