The 1980's have been times of great excitement in Astrophysics and Cosmology. Professors Dennis Sciama and Fabio Mardirossian and all the other Members of the Organizing Committees are to be congratulated for having given us a taste of this excitement in Trieste, by inviting the leaders of the subject to the meeting they have organized. The excitement has corne from the new observations of the three-dimensional structure of the universe through a large number of new measurements of redshifts. These have revealed that clusters of galaxies are distributed on the surface of big empty bubbles of diameters of the order of 20-50 Mpc. Additionally, there is some evidence for invisible dark matter (whose composition is not known) as well as evidence for the gravitational lens effect. To cap this has corne the supernova of 1987, an event which last occurred 383 years ago. For the first time in history, the neutrino flux from the supernova was measured, giving limits to neutrino masses and numbers of neutrino types. (The dark matter problem is related to Particle Physics - beyond this standard model). It is good to be alive when all this happens and to try to comprehend this. Once again, our appreciation to the organisers and to those who presented their beautiful results.

The classic account of the structure and evolution of the early universe from Nobel Prize–winning physicist P. J. E. Peebles An instant landmark on its publication, The Large-Scale Structure of the Universe remains the essential introduction to this vital area of research. Written by one of the world's most esteemed theoretical cosmologists, it provides an invaluable historical introduction to the subject, and an enduring overview of key methods, statistical measures, and techniques for dealing with cosmic evolution. With characteristic clarity and insight, P. J. E. Peebles focuses on the largest known structures—galaxy clusters—weighing the empirical evidence of the nature of clustering and the theories of how it evolves in an expanding universe. A must-have reference for students and researchers alike, this edition of The Large-Scale Structure of the Universe introduces a new generation of readers to a classic text in modern cosmology.

This volume documents the theoretical and observational results and arguments in favour of (or against) the most preferred models of structure formation. New observational results of the large scale distribution of matter are confronted with recent theories on the origin and evolution of structure in the universe.

Proceedings of the 130th Symposium of the International Astronomical Union, dedicated to the memory of Marc A. Aaronson (1950-1987), held in Balatonfured, Hungary, June 15-20, 1987

All matter, including galaxy clusters, galaxies, and their constituents follow orbits and flows driven by the net attraction of near and distant masses. The book presents the development of studies of peculiar motions along with discoveries in large-scale structure, the cosmic microwave background, baryonic oscillations, gravity waves, and their relation to current work on gravitation and dark matter.The results of peculiar motion measurements in the late 20th century are described as they were used to search for the dipole of the galaxy motions, a determination of cosmic density, and to compare with the cosmic microwave dipole, which led to the discovery of galactic flows and the Great Attractor. Newer detailed measurements from surveys in the 21st century have helped resolve the nature of these structures. Some prospects for future investigations are discussed.

The significance of the present IAU symposium, "The Large Scale Structure of the Universe", fortunately requires no elaboration by the editors. The quality of the wide range of observational and theoretical astrophysics contained in this volume speaks for itself. The published version of the proceedings contains all the contributions presented at the symposium with the exception of the introductory lecture by V. A. Ambartsumian. Contributed papers, short contributions and discussions have been included according to the recommendations of the IAU. Many people contributed to the success of the symposium. First of all, thanks are due to the USSR Academy of Sciences and to the Estonian Academy of Sciences for sponsoring this symposium in Tallinn. The efforts of Academician K. Rebane, President of the Estonian Academy of Sciences, are particularly appreciated. The astronomical hosts of the symposium were the members of the W. Struve Astrophysical Observatory of Tartu who made outstanding efforts to lavish participants with Estonian hospitality which was greatly appreciated and enjoyed by them and their guests. The members of the Scientific and Local Organising Committees are listed below and we thank all of them for their contributions which were central to the success of the symposium. In addition are listed members of the Technical Organising Committee who were responsible for all details of the organisation and whose vigilance ensured that all aspects of the symposium ran smoothly and efficiently. Their contributions are all gratefully acknowledged.