With this issue of “Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy,” we mark some significant transitions in the journal: first of all, the transition of the Editor in Chief from Prof. Sylvio Ferraz-Mello to Prof. Alessandra Celletti.

Professor Ferraz-Mello has been leading the journal for over 15  years, providing careful and expert guidance on all issues associated with the editorial board, the standards and the performance of the journal. Over this time, the journal has seen its international reputation and relevance grow, and has appropriately expanded its focus to include the mathematics of space flight in addition to its traditional areas of Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy. Sylvio’s approach to being an Editor in Chief was characterized by a calm confidence in his editors, his demand for rigor in the conduct of referees and editors, and a clear vision of the field that guided the direction of the journal. We are very glad to have his continued expertise available to the journal, as he steps into a new position as Honorary Editor and as a member of the Celestial Mechanics Institute.

We also mark another transition related to the journal, a change in leadership of the Celestial Mechanics Institute (CMI), the governing organization of the journal. The CMI consists of a select group of experts in the field of Celestial Mechanics, Dynamical Astronomy and Astrodynamics. Its role is to oversee the selection of Associate Editors and, when needed, the selection of the Editor in Chief. The CMI has been led by Prof. P.K. Seidelmann for almost two decades, during which time he has ably led the journal’s editorial board, overseeing growth in the area of Dynamical Astronomy and Astrodynamics to better accommodate these related fields in the journal’s editorial board, and expertly handling the recent transition to a new Editor in Chief. We are indebted to the leadership that Prof. Seidelmann has provided to the CMI over these years and are thankful that he will continue to serve on the CMI, providing his expertise and advice on new issues that will arise. The leadership of the CMI is transferred to Prof. Daniel J. Scheeres, with the Vice President role being taken up by Prof. K. Terry Alfriend.

Finally, we are glad to announce new additions to the editorial board, with Prof. Kathleen C. Howell coming on as an Associate Editor, with a focus on Astrodynamics in complex gravitational environments. We are also glad to welcome Prof. Howell and Prof. Richard Moeckel to the CMI.