Our mission, scope, and commitment to empowering the next generation of astronomers.
The Journal for Young Astronomers (JYA) is an international, peer-reviewed, open access journal dedicated to publishing original research by young astronomers between the ages of 14 and 24. Founded in 2024, JYA was created with a singular purpose: to make academic publishing accessible to early-career researchers and aspiring scientists who are actively contributing to our understanding of the universe.
We believe that scientific talent does not wait for a diploma. By providing a rigorous yet supportive publication platform, JYA fosters the development of research skills — from hypothesis formulation and data analysis to scientific writing and peer review — at the earliest stages of a researcher's career.
Our journal is more than a publication; it is a community. JYA brings together emerging scientists from around the world, connecting young researchers with mentors, collaborators, and opportunities that help transform curiosity into meaningful contributions to astronomy and astrophysics.
JYA publishes research spanning all areas of astronomy and astrophysics, including but not limited to:
The Journal for Young Astronomers is indexed and abstracted in the following databases:
JYA is a fully open access journal. All articles are published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
All articles are freely available to readers immediately upon publication. There are no article processing charges (APCs) for student authors. We believe that financial barriers should never prevent young scientists from sharing their work with the global research community.
The Journal for Young Astronomers is committed to upholding the highest standards of publication ethics. We follow the guidelines established by the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and hold all authors, reviewers, and editors to these principles.
All submitted manuscripts undergo double-blind peer review. The journal maintains a zero-tolerance policy for fabrication, falsification, plagiarism, and duplicate submission. Authors are required to disclose all data sources, funding, and potential conflicts of interest.
We recognize that many of our authors are early in their research careers, and our editorial process is designed to be both rigorous and educational. Reviewers are encouraged to provide constructive, detailed feedback that helps young researchers grow as scientists.
The Journal for Young Astronomers was founded in 2024 by a group of educators and professional astronomers who saw a growing need for a credible, peer-reviewed venue where young researchers could publish their work. Too often, exceptional student research remained confined to classroom presentations or science fairs — JYA was created to bridge the gap between classroom research and professional academic publication.
Since its founding, JYA has published over 45 articles from researchers in more than 20 countries, spanning topics from exoplanet transit analysis to gravitational wave source modeling. The journal continues to grow, driven by a shared belief that supporting young scientists today builds the foundation for the discoveries of tomorrow.