Australia has had a world class reputation in observational astronomy since the 1940s. For several decades Australia was the site of the best optical telescope that could view the southern skies, and Australia has been a world leader in radio astronomy since the birth of the subject. Australian theoretical astrophysics has not had as high a profile as observational astronomy, and it has been dispersed both geographically and in the astrophysical interests pursued.
When our optical astronomers had almost exclusive access to the southern sky, and our radio astronomers could make major new discoveries with instruments constructed on shoe-string budgets, the need for theoretical support was modest. However, as any branch of physical science evolves, the interplay between theory and observation becomes increasingly important. New discoveries are only of curiosity value until they are understood within a theoretical framework. The need for further theoretical astrophysical support for Australian astronomy was formally recognised in a 1989 Australian Science and Technology Report, which recommended that the Australian Research Council fund a Special Research Centre in Theoretical Astrophysics. The Research Centre for Theoretical Astrophysics (RCfTA) was funded from 1991 as a Special Research Centre by the Australian Research Council to enhance and consolidate research in theoretical astrophysics in Australia.