The European Geosciences Union (EGU) is Europe’s premier non-profit international organization dedicated to Earth, planetary, and space sciences research. Operating out of Munich, Germany, the union serves more than 23,500 international members across 22 scientific divisions. In modern scholarly communication, EGU plays a central role by maintaining a portfolio of 20 fully open access peer-reviewed scientific journals and hosting the annual EGU General Assembly, the continent’s largest scientific gathering in geosciences, geophysics, and geology.
What it is
The European Geosciences Union (EGU) was established in September 2002 through the merger of two predecessor societies: the European Geophysical Society (EGS) and the European Union of Geosciences (EUG). Structured as a registered non-profit association under German law (e.V.), EGU promotes fundamental geoscience inquiry alongside applied research addressing critical environmental, climatic, and planetary challenges.
The union operates under a commitment to open science principles. EGU is an official signatory of the Berlin Declaration on Open Access to Knowledge in the Sciences and Humanities (2003) and Open Access 2020. In addition to scholarly publications and conferences, EGU awards scientific distinctions, including four prestigious Union medals, division-level medals, and dedicated honors for early-career researchers.
Who runs it and what it covers
EGU is governed by an elected Council consisting of Union officers, Division Presidents, and Early Career Scientist representatives, coordinated by the EGU Executive Office located in Munich, Germany. The union’s scientific scope is structured into 22 distinct disciplinary divisions:
- Atmospheric and Climate Sciences: Atmospheric Sciences (AS), Climate: Past, Present & Future (CL), and Biogeosciences (BG).
- Solid Earth and Geodynamics: Geodesy (G), Geodynamics (GD), Geomorphology (GM), Earth Magnetism & Rock Physics (EMRP), Seismology (SM), Stratigraphy, Sedimentology and Palaeontology (SSP), Tectonics and Structural Geology (TS), and Volcanology, Geochemistry, Petrology & Mineralogy (GMPV).
- Hydrology and Cryosphere: Hydrological Sciences (HS), Cryospheric Sciences (CR), and Ocean Sciences (OS).
- Planetary and Space Sciences: Planetary & Solar System Sciences (PS) and Solar-Terrestrial Sciences (ST).
- Interdisciplinary and Applied Programs: Earth and Space Science Informatics (ESSI), Energy, Resources and the Environment (ERE), Natural Hazards (NH), Soil System Sciences (SSS), and Science Studies, Education and Outreach (SSEO).
EGU Publishing Architecture and Journals
EGU manages a portfolio of 20 peer-reviewed scientific journals published in partnership with Copernicus Publications. All EGU journals employ a two-stage publication model with interactive public peer review. Under this workflow, submitted manuscripts are first published as discussion papers in EGUsphere, the union’s central preprint and research repository. Reviewers, designated editors, and registered scientific peers submit public comments during an open discussion period before formal acceptance and final revised publication. Prominent EGU journal titles include:
- Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics (ACP)
- Atmospheric Measurement Techniques (AMT)
- Biogeosciences (BG)
- Climate of the Past (CP)
- Earth System Dynamics (ESD)
- Geoscientific Model Development (GMD)
- Hydrology and Earth System Sciences (HESS)
- Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences (NHESS)
- The Cryosphere (TC)
- Solid Earth (SE)
The EGU General Assembly Meeting Format
The annual EGU General Assembly brings together thousands of researchers from over 100 countries. Rather than relying solely on traditional presentation setups, the assembly uses three primary technical presentation formats:
- Oral Sessions: Traditional scheduled spoken presentations organized within division programme groups.
- Poster Sessions: Dedicated display periods allowing in-depth, one-on-one technical discussion around visual boards.
- PICO (Presenting Interactive COntent): A hybrid presentation format that combines a brief two-minute introductory oral overview on stage with subsequent interactive touch-screen stations where attendees browse digital slides, multimedia, and datasets.
In addition to divisional sessions, the meeting schedules Union Symposia, Great Debates addressing scientific policy, technical short courses, and Geosciences Information For Teachers (GIFT) workshops for educators. Open-access presentation abstracts and supplementary materials are archived on EGUsphere.
How to search or use it
Researchers interact with EGU resources, journals, and conference infrastructure using the following platform procedures:
- Access the EGU publications portal: Navigate to the publications index on the EGU website (egu.eu/publications) or directly access Copernicus Publications (copernicus.org).
- Browse journals and open discussion papers: Select a target journal from the 20 titles to review current publications, or visit EGUsphere (egusphere.copernicus.org) to inspect preprints and active discussion papers undergoing public comment.
- Submit a manuscript for interactive review: Register for a Copernicus author account, select the target journal, and upload the manuscript files according to journal LaTeX or Word templates. Upon editorial screening, the work is posted as a discussion preprint.
- Participate in public peer review: Access discussion manuscripts to submit interactive referee reports or community commentary within the designated open discussion window.
- Submit General Assembly abstracts: Log in to the meeting portal during the open call for abstracts, select the appropriate division programme group and session, and submit an abstract under oral, poster, or PICO preference.
- Apply for travel awards and early-career support: During conference registration and abstract submission, eligible researchers can apply for Roland Schlich travel support or division financial assistance.
- Consult division educational and career resources: Access division homepages on egu.eu to locate newsletters, job listings, blog posts on GeoLog, and image assets stored in the Imaggeo repository.
Strengths and limits
Strengths
- Open science leadership: All 20 journals operate on a transparent, gold open-access model with publicly viewable referee comments and author responses.
- Broad disciplinary scope: Covers Earth, planetary, and space sciences under one unified scientific community, facilitating cross-disciplinary collaboration.
- Innovative meeting architecture: PICO sessions deliver a modern hybrid format between short talks and interactive digital poster displays.
- Early-career integration: Strong institutional representation for early-career scientists across Council and division committees.
Limits
- Article processing charges: While articles are openly accessible to read, author institutions must cover article processing charges (APCs) unless supported by institutional agreements or fee waivers.
- Public critique visibility: The two-stage interactive review process places unrevised manuscripts and critical peer feedback into the public domain, which some authors find demanding.
- Conference scale complexity: With tens of thousands of participants and hundreds of concurrent sessions, navigating the General Assembly requires careful advance scheduling.
Alternatives
Researchers comparing EGU with international geoscience professional societies and conference organizers evaluate several primary platforms:
Headquarters / Region
Primary Scope
Publishing & Meeting Model
FAQ
What does EGU stand for?
EGU stands for the European Geosciences Union, the non-profit international society dedicated to research in Earth, planetary, and space sciences.
What is the EGU general assembly?
The EGU General Assembly is the union’s annual conference and Europe’s largest geosciences meeting, featuring thousands of presentations across oral, poster, and interactive PICO session formats.
What is the meaning of EGU?
EGU represents the collective professional union formed in 2002 to advance research, international scientific cooperation, and open-access publishing across all geoscience disciplines.
What is EGU 2026?
EGU 2026 designates the annual General Assembly of the European Geosciences Union held in that calendar year, gathering international researchers across 22 scientific divisions for technical presentations and symposia.
What is in EGU?
EGU encompasses 22 scientific divisions, 20 open-access peer-reviewed journals published via Copernicus, the EGUsphere preprint server, annual scientific medals and awards, educational workshops, and over 23,500 individual members worldwide.
What does EGU mean in medical terms?
In medical contexts, EGU is not a standardized clinical abbreviation. It occasionally appears as non-standard hospital shorthand for elective gastrointestinal units or emergency gastric units, or in specific clinical laboratory notations. In scientific research and publishing, EGU universally refers to the European Geosciences Union. Note that CASRAI provides research administrative guides, not clinical or diagnostic medical advice.
Sources
- European Geosciences Union. “About EGU.” EGU Official Portal. URL: https://www.egu.eu/about/ (November 8, 2026).
- European Geosciences Union. “Open Access Journals and Preprint Server.” EGU Publications Directory. URL: https://www.egu.eu/publications/open-access-journals/ (November 8, 2026).
- European Geosciences Union. “Meetings – General Assembly.” EGU Meetings Information. URL: https://www.egu.eu/meetings/general-assembly/ (November 8, 2026).
- European Geosciences Union. “Structure – How is EGU Structured?” EGU Governance and Divisions. URL: https://www.egu.eu/structure/ (November 8, 2026).