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Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395 www.elsevier.com/locate/procedia

25th International Conference on Knowledge-Based and Intelligent Information & Engineering

Systems and Intelligent Information & Engineering
25th International Conference on Knowledge-Based
Systems
The latest developments in computer science and their impact on
The latest developments in computer science and their impact on
space exploration
space exploration
Robert Suszyńskia*, Paweł Poczekajłoa
a Robert Suszyńskia*, Paweł Poczekajłoa
Koszalin University of Technology. ul Śniadeckich 2, 75-453 Koszalin, Poland
a
Koszalin University of Technology. ul Śniadeckich 2, 75-453 Koszalin, Poland

Abstract
Abstract
In the paper, the important role of tools and distributed IT resources in the dynamic development of astrophysics, astronomy, and
space exploration are discussed. New possibilities and approaches to conducting research in the field of astronomy and astrophysics
In thethe
with paper, thecloud
use of important role ofand
computing tools and distributed
advanced IT resources
data visualization in the dynamic
techniques are alsodevelopment of astrophysics,
presented. Finally, astronomy,
some examples of the and
use
space exploration
of digital sky surveyare databases
discussed.inNew possibilities
scientific andare
research approaches
shown. to conducting research in the field of astronomy and astrophysics
with
© 2021theThe
use Authors.
of cloud computing
Published by andELSEVIER
advanced dataB.V.visualization techniques are also presented. Finally, some examples of the use
of digital
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This sky
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is an survey
Authors.
open databases
accessPublished in scientific
by Elsevier
article under research
B.V. are shown.
the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
© 2021
This The
is an
Peer-review Authors.
open access
under Published by
article under
responsibility of ELSEVIER
the scientific
the B.V.
CC BY-NC-NDcommitteelicense (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
of KES International
This is an data
Keywords:
Peer-review open access
under article
processing; cloudunder
responsibility ofthe
theCC
computing; BY-NC-ND
hardware
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computing;
committee of(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
digital
KESsignal processing; genetic methods
International.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of KES International
Keywords: data processing; cloud computing; hardware computing; digital signal processing; genetic methods

1. Introduction
1. Introduction
Since the dawn of time, human evolution and human development have been associated with the discovery and
exploration
Since theofdawn
new of
spaces.
time, Since
humantheevolution
time of the
andgreat
humanPolish scientist - have
development Nicolaus
beenCopernicus, who the
associated with "stopped the Sun,
discovery and
moved
exploration of new spaces. Since the time of the great Polish scientist - Nicolaus Copernicus, who "stopped theofSun,
the Earth", we know much more about the outer space surrounding us. In his work "On the Revolutions the
Heavenly Spheres" (1543) he presented a groundbreaking model of the solar system, which is studied
moved the Earth", we know much more about the outer space surrounding us. In his work "On the Revolutions of the and developed
to this day.Spheres"
Heavenly The two (1543)
decadesheofpresented
the 21st century are filled with
a groundbreaking groundbreaking
model observations
of the solar system, whichmade with large
is studied telescopes
and developed
and radio telescopes on the ground, as well as with many observation instruments placed in space. These
to this day. The two decades of the 21st century are filled with groundbreaking observations made with large telescopes observations
confirmed the effectsonpredicted
and radio telescopes by as
the ground, Einstein's general
well as with many theory of relativity;
observation we learned
instruments placed the motions
in space. of stars
These passing
observations
through the extreme gravitational field near the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy
confirmed the effects predicted by Einstein's general theory of relativity; we learned the motions of stars passing - the Milky Way.
Over 4,000 extrasolar planets have already been discovered. Substantially more is known about the
through the extreme gravitational field near the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy - the Milky Way. structure and
operation of our closest star, the Sun. After more than 50 years, we are going to the moon again.
Over 4,000 extrasolar planets have already been discovered. Substantially more is known about the structure and On the fourth planet
of our system
operation of our- Mars,
closestthere
star, are several
the Sun. autonomous
After more thanrobots, andweone
50 years, areeven
goingflies in its
to the moonrareagain.
atmosphere. We look
On the fourth for
planet
of* our system - Mars, there are several autonomous robots, and one even flies in its rare atmosphere. We look for
Corresponding author. Tel.: +48-94-3478707.
E-mail address: robert.suszynski@tu.koszalin.pl
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +48-94-3478707.
E-mail address:
1877-0509 robert.suszynski@tu.koszalin.pl
© 2021 The Authors. Published by ELSEVIER B.V.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review
1877-0509 ©under
2021responsibility
The Authors. of the scientific
Published committeeB.V.
by ELSEVIER of KES International
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of KES International
1877-0509 © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0)
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of KES International.
10.1016/j.procs.2021.09.215
 Robert Suszyński et al. / Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395 4387
2 / Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000

traces of life there and make a multitude of discoveries about the past and present of Mars. The race has already begun
to send a manned mission to the red planet. Telescopes placed in outer space photograph images from the boundaries
of the observed universe. Objects whose light takes over a dozen billion years to reach us are observed, and so is their
history from the time when the universe was created (according to our current knowledge).
Such a sudden shift towards space exploration is not only about human curiosity and our thirst for knowledge, but
also about new opportunities for science and technology. We are witnessing a boom in astronomy and space research,
but these areas are not developing on their own. Observations and exploration of outer space are possible due to the
achievements of many fields of technology: mechanics, materials engineering, electronics and, to a very large extent,
computer science.
Efficient methods of processing huge amounts of data collected by ground-based telescopes are becoming
increasingly important. The outer space that surrounds us, both closer and more distant, is constantly monitored by
many research centers, using both optical instruments and those working in different radiation ranges. Thanks to
observations in the range of radio waves, the Event Horizon Telescope - EHT radio telescope with an effective size
close to the diameter of the Earth was able to observe a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy M87 for
the first time, located 55 million light-years away. The most shocking information for people unrelated to this project
is the fact that the image of the black hole in M87 was obtained in April 2021 after several years of numerical
processing of the signals recorded in 2017 [1–3]. This significant and historical photo is shown in Fig. 2. A huge
network of radio telescopes around the globe conducted observations and collected data synchronized with the help of
atomic clocks to indicate the time of observation precisely. Each of the EHT radio telescopes produced extremely
large amounts of data, nearly 350 terabytes a day. This data was processed by specialized supercomputers at the Max
Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy and the MIT Haystack Observatory, in order to combine them. The observations
obtained in this way were converted into images using theoretical modeling of the phenomena occurring in the black
hole, statistical processing of the measured signals, and innovative computational tools developed under the project
[4]. In this case, the results of the observations themselves did not bring any breakthroughs. Only their analysis,
processing and imaging gave revolutionary results.

Fig. 1. The first ever image of a black hole - Magnetic Fields at the Edge of M87’s Black Hole [3].
Source: EHT Collaboration.
4388 Robert Suszyński et al. / Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395
/ Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000 3

2. Modern computational methods in the data processing of observational astronomy

The source of new discoveries in the field of astrophysics, cosmology, the structure, history, and the future of the
universe around us are often observational data [5]. An observation of a new phenomenon, a more accurate
measurement of the spectrum or a greater resolution of measurement signals often contribute to the construction of
new models of the surrounding space and lead to a better understanding of the laws governing it. Hence, the invariably
important role of the conducted astronomical observations. Large and precise telescopes and radio telescopes located
in different parts of the world increasingly often observe the entire available sky, instead of making individual
observations of selected parts of it. This new approach is possible due to the development of observation instruments
as well as devices recording and processing observational data [6–11]. Thus, a fuller picture of the space that surrounds
us is obtained. This solution has many advantages, but also disadvantages. Given the enormous amount of data, we do
not know what new discoveries they may bring until we search and interpret the data. Modern IT methods help in this.

1.1. Fast astronomical photometry of variable stars

Photometry is the precise measurement of the apparent brightness of astronomical objects in particular specified
ranges of electromagnetic wavelength in the optically visible band [12, 13]. This light is measured through a telescope
using a photometer, often made using electronic devices such as a CCD camera. When calibrated against standard
stars (or other light sources) of known intensity and colour, photometers can measure the brightness or apparent
magnitude of celestial objects. When observing variable stars, fast photometry is now performed using the processing
of astronomical image data, which is the identification and classification of variable stars on the basis of light curve
properties. During identification, a crucial parameter is the precise determination of the star's variability period. The
study of variable stars is one of the most popular areas of modern astronomy, and one of the subgroups of variable
stars - Cepheids, is now commonly used in astronomy to determine distances in space.

1.2. Super-resolution of astronomical images

Hubble Space Telescope (HST) obtained an image of a small region of space in the constellation Fornax, containing
an estimated 10,000 galaxies, which is known as The Hubble Ultra-Deep Field (HUDF). HST accumulated data over
a period from September 24, 2003, through to January 16, 2004. The total exposure time was just under 1 million
seconds (11.3 days). For this task, NASA developed a method to effectively increase the resolution of the resulting
photos. To get the best resolution possible, the observations were dithered by pointing the telescope at slightly different
positions for each exposure so that the final image has a higher resolution than the pixels of an astronomical camera
on their own would normally allow [14–16]. This method is commonly used today in stacking many photos into one
resulting photo during long exposure photography.

1.3. Artificial intelligence in the analysis of astronomical data

Humanity is constantly searching for habitable exoplanets and star systems similar to ours. Most of the exoplanets
were discovered in the data from NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope. However, the recent discovery of an eighth planet
circling Kepler-90 (a Sun-like star 2,545 light-years from Earth in the constellation Draco) is different. The newly
discovered Kepler-90i (a sizzling hot, rocky planet that orbits its star once every 14.4 days) was found using machine
learning from Google during searching through archived Kepler data - an approach to artificial intelligence in which
computers learn to identify planets [17–20] in Kepler data by finding instances where the telescope recorded weak
transit signals from a previously-missed eighth planet orbiting Kepler-90.

1.4. Data mining in astronomy

Having received the measurement data of a large area of the sky for interpretation, we can focus on selected small
areas that interested us earlier or scan larger areas in search of anomalies, variables, or new previously unregistered
objects. Data mining methods are helpful in the latter approach.
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4 / Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000

We are at a turning point in astronomical observations. Increasingly often the data of interest to us already exists.
Accurate observations at different wavelengths are recorded, stored, and often publicly available. They are waiting
for researchers to search, process, interpret, and present new discoveries based on them. It is still not that simple.
Programming tools are needed to give researchers access to selected data according to appropriate criteria or
relationships between them. The answer to this demand are methods using data mining [21–23].
The application of data mining algorithms can be fundamental to astronomical research. They are a set of
computational tools used for discovery in large astronomical databases and solving such problems as:
● Cross--identification solves the problem of connecting the source list in observational data to the source
list in data archives and catalogs (or between two astronomical data archives), to derive a new
astrophysical understanding of the cross-identified objects.
● Cross-correlation which makes new discoveries possible based on the analysis of already existing data.
Particularly fruitful are cross-correlations between detailed data (object parameters) for the same
astronomical objects but contained in different databases (obtained in different research projects).
● Nearest- Neighbor Identification which is estimating the photometric redshifts of galaxies or quasars by
application of clustering algorithms in a multi-dimensional parameter space.
● Systematic Data Exploration which is the- application of specific queries to a database to make a discovery
of new objects or a new class of objects.
The data-rich astronomical catalogs can hardly be effectively exploited with traditional interactive tools. This
amount of data requires the use of innovative data mining methods resulting from a synergy between astronomy and
information sciences.

1.5. Visualization of astronomical data

The higher volume of data acquisition in observational astronomy demands innovative solutions in scientific
visualization [24–27]. Data is being collected increasingly often during a single observation, which creates new
challenges for data interpretation. Data visualization is an important tool for understanding and communicating data
and theoretical concepts in astronomy. Graphic visualization is a tool for analyzing information and serves primarily
to assess and communicate results and to only follow the computer-based analysis and processing of the data.
Capabilities of such a system include scatter plots, histograms, and tables with zoom, rotation, filtering, sorting,
sharing, and flexible I/O for fast display of large multivariate datasets. Significantly, the new efficient astronomical
data visualization helped communicate new discoveries to the general public.

3. Selected large astronomical databases

Nowadays, astronomy has become immensely data-rich. Many large ground-based telescopes and an increasing
number of instruments in space each day photograph large areas of the sky, and then process and archive astronomical
data. The sky is being systematically surveyed at many wavelengths, with billions of stars, galaxies, quasars, planets,
and other undiscovered objects detected and measured. Data sets are measured in petabytes (1015 bytes).
The existing astronomical data sets are so information-rich that researchers need many new research skills in cloud
computing, data analysis, and processing. We can use a computer instead of a telescope and search the database instead
of observing the sky and make first-rate observational discoveries without doing real observations. Often a good
addition to new observations is to combine them with the existing archival data.
This data revolution is based on the great progress in information technology, including:
● digital imaging,
● processing,
● storing,
● accessing information.
It is likely that the data we need already exists. Increasingly often astronomers investigate the existence of relevant
archival data at the beginning of their project. The benefits of using already existing data are obvious.
● There is no need for proposal, observing, reduction and analysis routines associated with traditional
observation.
● There is no need for a special place, sophisticated observation equipment and favorable weather to do
research.
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/ Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000 5

● Searching the database is cheaper than actual observations.

● Research can be done during the day.
● There are potential new discoveries waiting to be made.
The largest astronomical databases are obtained from sky surveys, which are general maps or images of a region of
the sky, not intended for targeted observation of a specific object. Sky surveys can help choose targets for closer study
using larger, more powerful telescopes. Sky surveys allow astronomers to catalog celestial objects and perform
statistical analyses on them. There are many databases containing scientific information on astronomical objects
available online.
More and more often, an astronomer interested in a particular object can find the data set in the archive sky survey
images, and they are sufficient to make preliminary research without real observation with a telescope. New
supernovas, asteroids or comets discoverers can be made by comparing existing survey images to current observations
to identify changes and find objects that move. Additionally, an image analysis software can be used to perform this
task automatically.

1.6. The Astrophysics Data System

The Astrophysics Data System (ADS) [28] is an online database of over eight million astronomy and physics
papers. Abstracts and full-texts of major astronomy and physics publications are indexed and searchable through the
new ADS modern search form. Abstracts are available free online for almost all articles and full versions for older
articles. It was developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and is managed by the
Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. ADS is a powerful research tool and has had a significant impact on
the efficiency of astronomical research. Literature searches that previously would have taken days or weeks can now
be carried out in seconds.

1.7. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey

The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) [29] is a major multi-spectral imaging and spectroscopic redshift survey.
SDSS has created the most detailed three-dimensional maps of the Universe, with deep multi-color images of one-
third of the sky, and spectra for more than three million astronomical objects. SDSS uses a dedicated 2.5 m wide-
angle optical telescope at Apache Point Observatory in New Mexico, United States.

1.8. SIMBAD – The Set of Identifications, Measurements and Bibliography for Astronomical Data

SIMBAD (the Set of Identifications, Measurements and Bibliography for Astronomical Data) [30–32] is an
astronomical database of objects beyond the Solar System. It is maintained by the Centre de données astronomiques
de Strasbourg (CDS), France. SIMBAD is the world reference database for the identification of astronomical objects.
Currently, SIMBAD contains information on astronomical objects (the nature of the object, its coordinates,
magnitudes, proper motions, and parallax, velocity/redshift, size, spectral or morphological type, and the multitude of
names) for 5,800,000 stars and about 5,500,000 non-stellar objects (galaxies, planetary nebulae, clusters, novae and
supernovae, etc.).

1.9. VizieR

The VizieR [33] is an astronomical catalog service provided by Centre de données astronomiques de Strasbourg
(CDS). The service provides the most complete library of published astronomical catalogues, tables, and associated
data. It contains verified and enriched data, accessible via multiple interfaces. Query tools allow the researcher to
select relevant data tables and to extract and format records matching given criteria. VizieR is a reference point for
astronomers worldwide engaged in research. Currently, it contains 20950 catalogues. It is also a major data source as
part of the Virtual Observatory.
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1.10. The Virtual Observatory

The Virtual Observatory (VO) [34] is a collection of interoperating data archives and software tools which utilize
the Internet to form a scientific research environment in which astronomical research programs can be conducted. The
VO consists of a collection of data centres each with unique collections of astronomical data, software systems, and
processing capabilities.
The main goal is to allow transparent and distributed access to data available worldwide. This allows scientists to
discover, access, analyze, and combine nature and lab data from heterogeneous data collections in a user-friendly
manner.

1.11. ESO Online Digitized Sky Survey

The Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) [35] is a digitized version of several photographic astronomical surveys of the
night sky, produced by the Space Telescope Science Institute between 1983 and 2006. The images of these surveys
are based on photographic data obtained using the Oschin Schmidt Telescope on Palomar Mountain and the UK
Schmidt Telescope.

4. Using the SIMBAD database to identify objects in astronomical images

All over the world, a large group of astro amateurs take millions of photos every clear night. Some of these photos
are taken to capture an image of an interesting astronomical object, and some to examine a fragment of the sky
available from a given location, in search of new objects or phenomena (variable stars, supernova explosions, comets,
asteroids). A range of astronomy software is used to take pictures on small and medium-sized telescopes that astro
amateurs are equipped with, whether for an astrophotography or a science program. When selecting the object for
observation and subsequent evaluation of the resulting photo, publicly available virtual sky atlases are used
(Stellarium, Cartes Du Ciel, Sky Safari, TheSkyX ...), which are available for computers or mobile devices.
Unfortunately, they use databases that are limited in size and therefore inaccurate and incomplete. This results in
discrepancies between the astrophotography taken and the objects presented by the virtual sky atlas (planetarium
software). While it is irrelevant in the case of astrophotography, in the case of scientific analysis of the photo, however,
these discrepancies prevent the correct identification of objects in the photograph. The solution is to use professional
"Sky Plate Solving" object identification software (e.g., TPoint, PinPoint Astrometric Engine) or to develop one's own
tools and use professional online astronomy databases.

1.12. The SIMBAD – the reference database of astronomical objects

When taking long exposure photography of deep sky objects (DSO), a series of several dozen several-minute-long
exposures are usually made, which are then calibrated, stacked and numerically processed in order to emphasize the
photographed objects and remove noise. Processing a photo too aggressively may remove some of the weaker objects
or, worse, cause the appearance of artifact objects that are not in the photo. If the image is to be used for scientific
purposes, then the final enhancement of the objects should be omitted or carried out carefully. When examining the
photographed area of the sky, the photo taken is most commonly compared with a reference photo (previously taken
for a similar part of the sky) or correlated with a virtual image generated numerically, based on information from the
database of astronomical objects [22, 31].

1.13. An observational data vs. the SIMBAD database

In order to present the possibility of scientific analysis of a selected part of the sky, a comparison of two methods
was performed. The first one was based on obtaining DSO astronomical data using classical observation methods at
visible wavelengths, while the second on the use of the SIMBAD astronomical database [30–32].
The highly interesting and visually stunning object – the Elephant's Trunk Nebula, was selected. It is a
concentration of interstellar gas and dust within the much larger ionized gas region IC 1396 located in the constellation
Cepheus. The nebula resembles an elephant’s head and trunk at visible wavelengths, appearing as a dark patch with a
4392 Robert Suszyński et al. / Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395
/ Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000 7

bright winding rim. The bright rim is the surface of a dense cloud that is being illuminated and ionized by a very
bright, massive star (HD 206267). Nebula is about 2,400 light years away from Earth.

Fig. 2. Elephant Trunk Nebula captured by Robert Suszynski from his back garden in Koszalin on March 6, 2021.

The Elephant's Trunk Nebula shown in Fig. 2 was captured by Robert Suszynski using a 10” Newtonian telescope
from his back garden [36] in Koszalin on March 6, 2021. Several dozen long exposure photos of this area have been
collected using the Skywatcher EQ8-R Pro equatorial mount, guide system and Canon EOS camera. The photo was
obtained after processing 45 frames with a total exposure time of 2 hours, 15 minutes, and 4.7 GB of total size of
images. Calibration and stacking process on the workstation with i9-9900 CPU and 32 GB RAM took 96 seconds of
computing time. Chosen frames were calibrated and then stacked using correlation of 1063 stars and Auto Adaptive
Weighted Average combination method. Next, 2 hours of the image processing was done in Photoshop to adjust the
tonal range and color balance of the final image.
Next, the image was analyzed in order to obtain scientific information about the stars that have become visible.
The grayscale inversion image of the Elephant's Trunk Nebula with a selected area around the HD 239710 – young
stellar object, is shown in Fig. 3a. The grayscale image was processed to obtain the star mask. This computation was
obtained using the following calculation parameters: the “bell shape” as the standard of the star brightness distribution,
10 % star detection threshold, 2 pixels minimum and 50 pixels maximum size of the star. The star mask obtained as a
result of calculations is shown in Fig. 3b. In the selected area, there are 331 marked stars whose relative brightness
and signal level in relation to background noise are sufficient to perform fast photometry. A significant disadvantage
of this method is that several bright optically double stars were misinterpreted by the above algorithm as non-stellar
objects and removed from the resulting image.
 Robert Suszyński et al. / Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395 4393
8 / Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000

a b

Fig. 3. (a) inverted grayscale image of analyzed image of the Elephant's Trunk Nebula; (b) calculated star mask of this area.
Source: Author's own computing

For comparison, Figure 4a shows an image of the analyzed area of IC 1396 Nebula taken from the SIMBAD
astronomical database. The selected area with diameter 30 arc minutes around HD 239710 contains 1591 stellar
objects with complete photometric data and references. What is also very important, submitting the query to the
database and its response took 16.89 seconds.

a b

Fig. 4. (a) image of the Elephant's Trunk Nebula from SIMBAD database; (b) inverted grayscale image of this area.
Source: SIMABD database – AladinLite view

Table 1. Comparison of two ways of obtaining data.

Parameters of the obtained data The image of the analyzed area of The data from SIMABD database
IC 1396 Nebula taken during
astronomical observation
Analyzed area of the sky radius 30 arc sec radius 30 arc sec
Total time of data gathering 2 hours 15 minutes (8 100 seconds) 17 seconds
Total time of data processing 2 hours 96 seconds (7 296 seconds) 0 seconds
Estimated number of stellar objects 331 1 591
Hardware requirements telescopes, mount, camera, computers computer, network
Other conditions night, good place and weather, -
Estimated cost quite high negligible
4394 Robert Suszyński et al. / Procedia Computer Science 192 (2021) 4386–4395
/ Procedia Computer Science 00 (2021) 000–000 9

a b

Fig. 5. (a) analyzed area of IC 1396 Nebula with described interstellar objects (color marks). (b) the 1591 stellar objects of the analyzed area.
Source: SIMBAD database – interactive AladinLite view.

The presented two methods of obtaining data on astronomical objects are completely different, they require a
different amount of work and resources, and give results of different quality. Several features characterizing both
methods are presented in Tab. 1. The number of known and reliably described objects of the analyzed area is shown
in Fig. 5a. Each object marked with a colored tag has its own identifier, described parameters, and references to
scientific works. The variety of objects identified in this part of the sky is illustrated in Fig. 5b.
Obtaining reliable observational data is time-consuming and costly. A definitely good way to start research or
implement pilot projects by astronomy enthusiasts or students is to use the abundance of data in astronomical databases
for free.

5. Conclusion

The paper presents the important role of tools and distributed IT resources in the dynamic development of
astrophysics, astronomy, and space exploration. The participation of advanced numerical methods in obtaining the
results of contemporary astronomical observations is presented. The key importance of data processing and analysis
in the processing of raw measurement data from observation instruments was emphasized. The possibilities of
multiplying the possibilities and functionality of these devices through the implementation of synchronized
observations of objects by many radio telescopes located in distant locations were indicated.
As an example of the use of dispersed astronomical data resources, the correlation of the real astrophotography of
a stunning object – The Elephant's Trunk Nebula (a part of IC1396) with the virtual image obtained on the basis of
data from the SIMBAD database was presented.

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