pysky: An Application for the Planning of Multi-Target Astronomical Observations  

作　　者：Allen E. Rocha William D. Parker Allen E. Rocha;William D. Parker(Department of Mathematics and Physics, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, Kenosha, USA)

机构地区：[1]Department of Mathematics and Physics, University of Wisconsin-Parkside, Kenosha, USA

出　　处：《Journal of Applied Mathematics and Physics》2021年第11期2765-2775,共11页应用数学与应用物理（英文）

摘　　要：To automate the process of planning and curating multi-target observation sessions, pysky application builds on the astroplan Python package to identify visible objects during an observation window and produce relevant information about those objects in visual and graphical form. The package calculates object visibility based on a provided time window and observing location as well as maximum airmass and limiting magnitude requested by the user. The pysky application images of the target objects with identifying and astrometric data to provide context for the images. In addition, pysky creates polar plots of each object’s horizontal coordinates, and the images and plots are designed to be shown side-by-side. The package also generates an HTML table of the selected target objects with their related data to relay the entire target list as one. The pysky application draws on a variety of Python packages to collect and process data from databases such as JPL Horizons and SIMBAD. Results for a test event were verified by hand using database web interfaces. The pysky application provides a platform for further integration of automated observation planning with websites and apps to enhance multi-target observation sessions.To automate the process of planning and curating multi-target observation sessions, pysky application builds on the astroplan Python package to identify visible objects during an observation window and produce relevant information about those objects in visual and graphical form. The package calculates object visibility based on a provided time window and observing location as well as maximum airmass and limiting magnitude requested by the user. The pysky application images of the target objects with identifying and astrometric data to provide context for the images. In addition, pysky creates polar plots of each object’s horizontal coordinates, and the images and plots are designed to be shown side-by-side. The package also generates an HTML table of the selected target objects with their related data to relay the entire target list as one. The pysky application draws on a variety of Python packages to collect and process data from databases such as JPL Horizons and SIMBAD. Results for a test event were verified by hand using database web interfaces. The pysky application provides a platform for further integration of automated observation planning with websites and apps to enhance multi-target observation sessions.

关 键 词：Observational Astronomy OBSERVATORIES Astronomy Software 

分 类 号：TP3[自动化与计算机技术—计算机科学与技术]