ASTRONOMICAL SURVEYS and BIG DATA 3

The International Symposium Astronomical Surveys and Big Data 3 (ASBD-3) will take place on 15-19 September 2025 in the Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO), Armenia and will be dedicated to the 60^th anniversary of Markarian Survey (First Byurakan Survey, FBS, included in UNESCO Documentary Heritage “Memory of the World” International Register in 2011) and the 20^th anniversary of the Armenian Virtual Observatory (ArVO, member of the International Virtual Observatory Alliance, IVOA). This will be the 3^rd such meeting; we had successful meetings ASBD in 2015 and ASBD-2 in 2020 with participation of astronomers and computer scientists. This way we make these meetings regular for BAO, as it is one of the traditional world centers for astronomical surveys and Big Data with its digitized plate archive and ArVO. We combine astronomers and computer scientists with heavy involvement of astronomical surveys, catalogs, archives, databases, Virtual Observatories (VOs), as well as all other Astroinformatics related fields.

Astronomical Surveys are the main source for discovery of astronomical objects and accumulation of observational data for further analysis, interpretation, and achieving scientific results. In 1940s-1950s Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS, at present digitized as DSS1) gave more data that it was collected during the whole epoch of astronomical observations before. Similarly, Markarian Survey (or the First Byurakan Survey, FBS) was the first large-area spectroscopic survey resulting at low-dispersion spectra for 20,000,000 objects. Later on, many all-sky or large-area surveys appeared (POSS2 (DSS2), SDSS, etc.), including many surveys in Gamma and X rays, UV, IR, sub-mm/mm and radio, multiwavelength surveys using Space telescopes and combining ground-based and Space telescope observations. Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) so far has provided the largest database (both photometric and spectroscopic) and SDSS-based virtual sky may be explored for new discoveries, especially in extragalactic field. Gaia has provided the largest astronomical catalog of 1.8 billion objects with unprecedented astrometric accuracy, as well as photometry and low-dispersion spectra. LAMOST and CALIFA give new large sets of spectra. PanSTARRS, ALMA, JWST, Euclid and many others are sources for new vast amount of data. Rubin (LSST) and SKA are the next source for vast amount of information. Modern multiwavelength surveys include GOODS, COSMOS, GAMA, and others. The large amount of data requires new approaches to data reduction, management and analysis. We now deal with Big Data. Powerful computer technologies are required, including clusters and grids. Virtual Observatories (VOs) have been created to coordinate astronomers’ and computer scientists’ actions and help in accomplishment of complex research programs using all the accumulated data. International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA) unifies 22 VO projects for joint efforts toward handling of Big Data and creation of an environment for more efficient research. The International Science Council (ISC) has created World Data System (WDS) to unify data coming from different science fields for further possibility of exchange and new science projects (BAO is a member of WDS as well).

Our meeting will contribute to the following:

Review and discuss large astronomical surveys to summarize observational data obtained in astronomy
Give tribute to Markarian Survey and other important surveys
Review and discuss astronomical catalogues, databases and archives
Learn about major current and upcoming surveys (including Euclid, Rubin, etc.)
Learn and discuss how large observational data sets are changing astronomy
Introduce tools and techniques for working with large data sets (including access, data mining, analysis, visualization, etc.)
Discuss the future of astronomical research by joint efforts of astronomers and computer scientists

During the week before ASBD-3, on 8-12 September 2025, we are organizing our traditional school, the IAU South West and Central Asian (SWCA) 4^th Regional Astronomical Summer School (4RASS) on “Astronomy and Data Science”, where dozens of students from both regional and other countries take part and they will be able to stay longer for ASBD-3 as well. In addition, some of the ASBD-3 participants may arrive earlier and be invited as lecturers as 4RASS. This combination is rather efficient for both events and to have the weekend between them to visit Armenian sightseeing. Finally, September 18 is Viktor Ambartsumian’s birthday and has officially been recognized as Astronomy Day in Armenia; ASBD-3 participants will have chance to take part in this event as well.

Beniamin Markarian (1913-1985) was the first to conduct and accomplish a large-area (17,000 sq. deg.) spectroscopic survey in 1965 to search for active galaxies. Markarian survey is until now the largest objective-prism spectroscopic survey, it was the first systematic search for active galaxies using a new method of UV-excess, it resulted in the discovery of 1515 UVX galaxies (Markarian galaxies), including many AGN and Starbursts, first classification of Seyferts into Sy1 and Sy2, and definition of Starburst galaxies. BAO is famous for other surveys as well: Second Byurakan Survey (SBS, by Markarian and his colleagues), Arakelian and Kazarian galaxies, Shahbazian compact groups of compact galaxies, Parsamian cometary nebulae, Byurakan-IR Galaxies (BIG) and Byurakan-IR Stars (BIS) and other objects also are well known. All this makes Byurakan as a right place for organization of such meeting.

Byurakan Astrophysical Observatory (BAO) is one of the main observational centers of the former Soviet Union and is an important observatory with modern facilities in the region. It was founded in 1946 by the outstanding Armenian scientist V. A. Ambartsumian (1908-1996) and is well known for its large spectroscopic surveys (FBS and SBS). BAO hosts a number of medium-size optical telescopes, the most important being the 2.6m classical telescope and 1m Schmidt telescope. BAO holds the Digitized First Byurakan Survey (DFBS, or the Digitized Markarian survey created in 2002-2007), containing low-dispersion spectra of ~20,000,000 objects and BAO Plate Archive that are the basis for the Armenian Virtual Observatory (ArVO), a member of the International Virtual Observatory Alliance (IVOA). BAO and Armenia host the IAU South West and Central Asian Regional Office of Astronomy for Development (SWCA ROAD) and support the development of astronomy in Armenia, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkey and other regional countries.

Armenian astronomy is also famous for a number of important astronomical meetings, organized by and mostly held in BAO: 7 IAU Symposia and Colloquia; IAU Symposia: #29 in 1966 (Non-Stable Phenomena in Galaxies), #121 in 1986 (Observational Evidence of Activity in Galaxies), #137 in 1989 (Flare Stars in Star Clusters, Associations and Solar Vicinity), #194 in 1998 (Activity in Galaxies and Related Phenomena), #304 in 2013 (Multiwavelength AGN Surveys and Studies) and #365 in 2023 (Dynamics of Solar and Stellar Convection Zones and Atmospheres), IAU Colloquium #184 in 2001 (AGN Surveys), as well as the European Annual Meeting JENAM was organized by BAO in Yerevan in 2007. The first international meeting on Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence (CETI) was organized in Byurakan in 1971. We have organized a UNESCO Conference “Astronomical Heritage of the Middle East” in 2017 and the 2^nd such meeting will be held on 6-10 October 2025. BAO-ESO Summer School was organized in 1987. The Byurakan International Summer Schools (BISS) are being organized since 2006, and 9 successful schools have been held in 2006, 2008, 2010 (combined with the 32th IAU ISYA), 2012, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024. IAU SWCA Regional Astronomical Summer Schools (RASS) are being organized since 2019, and 3 such schools have been held in 2019, 2021 and 2023 (the 1^st Inter-Regional Astronomical Summer School, 1IRASS). The 4^th one will be held just before the ASBD-3, on 8-12 Sep 2025. Many other meetings and schools have been organized as well, including some of them related to Astronomy and Big Data.

The Principle Investigators and/or representatives of all major astronomical surveys, heads and/or representatives of Virtual Observatory projects, astronomers and computer scientists working in the area of Big Data will be invited to the meeting. We plan to have some 100-120 participants, including many young researchers and students.