astropytime

Astropytime is the time-related subpackage of the Astropy project, providing tools for representing, manipulating, and converting times in astronomical applications. It centers on the Time class and related utilities to work with times across different standards and formats.

Time objects can be created from ISO-8601 strings, Julian Date (JD), Modified Julian Date (MJD), or Unix time, and they support scalar or array inputs. Internally, times are stored in JD/MJD with an associated time scale such as UTC, TAI, TT, TDB, TCB, TCG, GPS, or UT1. The package also handles leap seconds and can use IERS data to maintain accuracy when converting between UTC and other scales.

The package supports conversions between scales and formats, enabling precise transformations and representations. Output formats include ISO strings, JD, MJD, or Unix time. Time objects support arithmetic with TimeDelta and can operate on arrays in a vectorized manner, facilitating batch time processing.

Astropytime integrates with other Astropy components, including coordinates and ephemerides, to support time-dependent calculations, barycentric corrections, and synchronization of observational data. It is widely used in astronomy workflows and is maintained as part of the Astropy time module.

Documentation and reference implementations provide guidance for common tasks such as parsing, formatting, and conversions, as well as procedures for updating leap-second data. The design emphasizes precision, interoperability with other Astropy tools, and consistent handling of time scales across observational and theoretical work.