Astronomy from Wide-Field Imaging

H. T. MacGilLIVRAY Royal Observatory Blackford Hill Edinburgh EH9 3HJ Scotland U. K. lAU Symposium No. 161 on 'Astronomy from Wide-Field Imaging', held in Potsdam, Germany, during 23-27th August 1993, was the first conference organised by the recently-formed Working Group of lAU Commission 9 on 'Wide-Field Imaging'. This Working Group was instigated during the XXIst meeting of the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union in Buenos Aires in 1991, and represented a merging of the former formal lAU Working Group on 'Astronomical Photography' and the informal 'Digitised Optical Sky Surveys' Working Group. Dr. Richard West was 'invited' to be Chairperson, and hence was given the daunting task of organising the Group from scratch. The very fact that the first conference after only two years was a major lAU Symposium says much about the determination and enthusiasm of Richard West to fulfilling the aims of the new Working Group. The siting of the conference in Potsdam in formerly East Germany provided an excellent opportunity to advantage from the political changes in Eastern Europe. Good access to the meeting was possible by scientists from Eastern European countries, allowing exchange of information on the very important Wide-Field facilities in both East and West, information on the rich archives of photographic plates that exist in both East and West, and allowing discussions between scientists facing very similar problems in both East and West.