SWIGLAL: Python and Octave interfaces to the LALSuite gravitational-wave data analysis libraries
Karl Wette
Abstract
The LALSuite data analysis libraries, written in C, implement key routines critical to the successful detection of gravitational waves, such as the template waveforms describing the merger of two black holes or two neutron stars. SWIGLAL is a component of LALSuite which provides interfaces for Python and Octave, making LALSuite routines accessible directly from scripts written in those languages. It has enabled modern gravitational-wave data analysis software, used in the first detection of gravitational waves, to be written in Python, thereby benefiting from its ease of development and rich feature set, while still having access to the computational speed and scientific trustworthiness of the routines provided by LALSuite.
Topics & Concepts
Python (programming language)Scripting languageComputer scienceProgramming languageTrustworthinessGravitational waveKey (lock)Component (thermodynamics)Data structureUser interfaceCompilerGraphical user interfaceSoftwareExecutableInterface (matter)DebuggingDistinctive featureFeature (linguistics)UsabilityExtensibilityGravitationComputer graphics (images)Gravitational accelerationPulsars and Gravitational Waves ResearchGamma-ray bursts and supernovaeComputational Physics and Python Applications