It is located on the slope of Mount Aragats in the village of Byurakan in Armenia.

[1] The observatory has discovered special star clusters — stellar associations (1947),[1] more than 1,000 flare stars, dozens of supernovae, hundreds of Herbig–Haro objects and cometary nebulae, hundreds of galaxies.

[1] It has been the site of two major conferences on SETI, and is recognised as the regional center for astronomical research.

[1] These galaxies are designated "Markarian" or "Mrk" followed by a number, for example Mrk 501.The Byurakan spectral survey of Markarian's sky is included in the international register of the UNESCO Memory of the World program.

The Second Byurakan Survey, 1974 to 1991,[2] looked for emission line and ultraviolet excess galaxies, and quasars as well.