&

PyNOVAS: Astronomical functions and applications

Last updated: January 24, 2006.

Introduction

PyNOVAS offers a collection of functions and applications for calculating the positions of the sun, moon, planets and other celestial objects.

The PyNOVAS source is licensed under the GPL.

Pynovas is based on the C-version of NOVAS from USNO.

Languages

• Python
• C

The sources are available for download from the SourceForge Summary Page: http://sourceforge.net/projects/pynovas

Getting started

Download the appropriate pynovas-x.y.z.tar.gz and on a Linux system you are in business (use Python-2.3.y, or higher).

There is a file JPLEPH containing ephemerides from JPL for the years 2000-2020.

Other versions will follow.

To build pynovas yourself you need

• NOVAS C sources (novas.h, novas.c, etc.)
• SWIG
• JPL Ephemerides files

Applications

The applications are all rather simple and studying them may be instructive. See test.py, almanac.py and eclipse.py.

See also the extended documentation of C-Novas.

Related software

• Astrolabe: http://astrolabe/sourceforge.net

Change history

• 28-Sep-2001: First version on SourceForge.

• 24-Jan-2006: Beta release-0.1b2.