Antalya: The 77th International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2026), slated to take place from October 5-9 in Trkiye's Mediterranean resort city of Antalya, has already broken records in terms of scientific submissions and early registrations.

According to Anadolu Agency, the congress, organized annually by the International Astronautical Federation and coordinated by Trkiye's Industry and Technology Ministry, will be hosted by the Turkish Space Agency and co-hosted by SAHA Istanbul. The latter is known as Trkiye's and Europe's largest defense, aerospace, and space industry cluster. The event's global communications partner is Anadolu.

The congress has received 8,330 research abstracts from 108 countries, setting new records for both the number of submissions and participating nations. This figure exceeds the approximately 7,000 abstracts submitted for the 2024 congress in Milan and the 6,400 for the 2025 congress in Sydney. Trkiye leads with 1,810 abstracts submitted, marking the highest number from a single country in the history of the IAC. Turkish researchers also top the list for accepted papers, with 674 submissions.

Following a thorough evaluation process, 4,077 studies were accepted directly, while 542 were placed on a waiting list. More than 4,000 presentations are expected to take place across over 180 technical sessions during the congress. Additionally, early registrations have surpassed previous records, with over 3,000 participants from 83 countries signing up ahead of the event.

Outreach activities such as university engagements, Trkiye's Sky Observation Event, and TEKNOFEST have played a significant role in encouraging students, academics, and researchers across the country to contribute their work to the congress.

Source: Anadolu Agency