Prof. Dr. Johannes Ortner, an Austrian geophysicist, was an early participant in COPERS and ESRO as researcher and administrator. He studied electrical engineering and technical physics at the Technical University of Wien, before turning to doctorate work in meteorology and geophysics at the University of Wien (1957-1960). He joined the geophysical observatory of the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences, where he was involved with the first Swedish auroral space experiments. From 1962 to 1965, he was responsible for atmospheric and ionospheric projects at COPERS and ESRO. Towards the end of 1965, he moved to ESLAB, Noordwijk, as Assistant Director of Scientific Programmes. From 1968 to 1974, he filled a similar post, Assistant Director of Programme Planning, at the ESRO headquarters in Paris. He left ESRO in 1974 to direct the Austrian Space Agency in Wien. From 1980 to 1983, he chaired the Spacelab programme board at ESA, and he also served as Vice-Chair to the Scientific Programme Committee from 1987 to 1990. He was President of the International Astronautical Federation (1986-1988) and is a member of the International Academy of Astronautics and the board of the directors of the International Space University. Johannes Ortner took over as Vice President of EURISY in 1993.