Report by the Chairman

A relevant observation regarding the First Lunar Science Conference at Houston, Texas, in January, 1970, was made by Dr A. Dollfus as Chairman of a Special Working Session on lunar geology, geophysics and returned lunar samples, held at Brighton, England, in August 1970 on the occasion of the Fourteenth General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union: Dollfus remarked that very few astronomers were present at Houston. Clearly, the highest efficiency in the study of the Moon will be achieved only if a suitable forum is created for the exchange of views of scientists from a variety of disciplines bearing on the lunar problem. Accordingly, Commission 17 (The Moon) of the International Astronomical Union set up a Working Group to assist with the geological and geophysical interpretation of the Moon in close connexion with the relevant astrophysical topics. Two meetings of this Working Group 3 were held during the IAU Symp. 47 ‘The Moon’ at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in April, 1971. The following recommendations and problems derive from these meetings and from correspondence with IAU members not present at the meetings.