{"categories":[{"label":"Visualization","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/scientific-engineering-visualization"},{"label":"Astronomy","url":"https://skillfed.io/packages/category/scientific-engineering-astronomy"}],"enrichment":{"capability":"healpy wraps the HEALPix C++ library to handle pixelated data on the sphere, enabling coordinate conversions, map transformations, spherical harmonics analysis, and visualization of all-sky survey data.","skillfed_tags":["astronomy","spherical-data","healpix"],"use_cases":["Analyze Cosmic Microwave Background maps from experiments like WMAP or Planck by converting sky coordinates to HEALPix indices and computing power spectra.","Process all-sky survey data (e.g., radio, infrared, X-ray) by upgrading/downgrading map resolution and applying coordinate transformations.","Visualize spherical data in multiple projections (Mollweide, Gnomonic, Cartographic) for publication-ready figures.","Transform maps between spherical harmonics space and pixel space for efficient filtering or statistical analysis.","Find pixels within arbitrary sky regions (disks, polygons, strips) for targeted data extraction from large surveys."],"what_it_does":"healpy is a Python wrapper around the HEALPix C++ library, designed to work with pixelated data distributed uniformly across the sphere. It was originally developed for Cosmic Microwave Background analysis but is now used across astrophysics for all-sky survey data storage and manipulation. The package provides utilities to convert between sky coordinates and pixel indices, transform between reference frames (Galactic, Ecliptic, Equatorial), read and write FITS-format maps, and compute spherical harmonics transforms using multi-threaded C++ routines.\n\nThe package depends on numpy and astropy as runtime dependencies, with optional matplotlib support for visualization. It ships prebuilt wheels for modern Python versions (3.10\u20133.14) on Linux, macOS, and musllinux, reducing compilation friction for most users. However, it bundles the HEALPix and cfitsio C++ libraries, so installation may require a C++ compiler on some systems. The codebase is actively maintained and carries no known security vulnerabilities.","worth_installing":"Yes, if you work with all-sky or spherical survey data in astrophysics. The package is production-stable, actively maintained, has no security issues, and prebuilt wheels make installation straightforward on supported platforms. The GPL-2.0 copyleft license is standard in academic astronomy but requires review for commercial use. Not suitable for Windows systems."},"id":"healpy","links":{"html":"https://skillfed.io/packages/healpy","md":"https://skillfed.io/packages/healpy.md","pypi":"https://pypi.org/project/healpy/"},"maintenance":{"status":"active"},"meta":{"latest_release":"2026-07-23","license_spdx":null,"license_treatment":"copyleft","name":"healpy","python_support":"supports_current","summary":"Healpix tools package for Python"},"popularity":{"monthly_downloads":301258,"position":7839,"tier":"top_15000"},"security":{"n_vulnerabilities":0},"version":"1.20.0"}