Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy separated from Royal Meteorological Institute
History
On 25 November 1964 the Aeronomical Service is separated from the Royal Meteorological Institute (RMI) and lives on as a scientific institution of the state with the name: Belgian Institute for Space Aeronomy (BIRA-IASB). In 2014, BIRA-IASB celebrates its 50th anniversary and gains its royal statute. On this occasion, the Institute gathered 50 important events in its history.
The institute has as main competence, tasks of public service and research in the domain of Space Aeronomy. BIRA-IASB mostly works with data acquired via rockets and artificial satellites for research to the physical and chemical structure of the higher atmosphere and extraterrestrial space. The first director was M. Nicolet. As of 2021 the director general ad interim is Martine De Mazière.