IERS Message No. 1

[IERS Central Bureau]

***************************************************************************
IERS Message No. 1                                          January 2, 2001
***************************************************************************


Dear IERS contributors and users

As of 1 January 2001 the International Earth Rotation Service has got a new 
structure with the following novelties:
- The previous Sections and Sub-Bureaus of the Central Bureau are now 
autonomous components within the IERS and are called Product Centres.
- The Central Bureau moved from Paris to Frankfurt am Main in Germany and
has now primarily administrative functions but will operate a data base for
the relevant IERS products and data in the future.
- New elements of the structure are Combination Research Centres, 
ITRS Combination Centres and the Analysis Coordinator.
- External services like IGS, ILRS and IVS serve as Technique Centres for
the IERS.

Several new members entered the Directing Board in December 2000, and 
recently Jan Vondrak was elected new Chairman of the Directing Board to 
succeed Chris Reigber on January l, 2001.

On 1 January 2001 also a new Web site of the IERS went online:
www.iers.org

All previous IERS Web and ftp servers will remain active, providing 
information and data to the users. The new Web site www.iers.org, which 
will be enlarged and improved in the future, shall provide key information 
on the IERS and its components. It will also link to the IERS components 
and to other Web sites of interest.

This IERS Message is the second in a series of short information on the
IERS and its products for contributors and users. This series together with
a planned series of IERS Newsletters will replace the IERS Gazettes, issued
between 1996 and 2000.

More information about the new IERS is given at the new IERS Web site.


With kind regards and best wishes for the year 2001,
for the IERS Central Bureau
Bernd Richter and Wolfgang R. Dick


PS: This IERS Message will be sent to all IERS contributors and users for
which we have got an e-mail address from the former Central Bureau. In case
that you are not interested in receiving future IERS Messages please let us
know so your address may be from the mailing list. If you are reading this
message at the Web site or elsewhere and wish to be put on the mailing list
please send us a short notice.


***************************************************************************

IERS Central Bureau
Bundesamt fuer Kartographie und Geodaesie
Federal Agency of Cartography and Geodesy
Richard-Strauss-Allee 11
60598 Frankfurt am Main
Germany
phone: ++49-69-6333-273
fax: ++49-69-6333-425
e-mail: central_bureau at iers.org

***************************************************************************