With the ever-growing role of software development and computer programming in astronomical research, our community is faced with many new challenges in nearly every aspect of our profession. In this talk, I first will describe the various types of software and the many different roles it plays in the research cycle. I will also describe my personal journey — involving Astropy, the AAS, a National Academies panel, and the 2020 Decadal Survey — which has both shaped my understanding and enabled me to influence the environment around software development. Throughout the talk, I will highlight resources and tactics which individual researchers and teams can use to adapt to the rapidly changing landscape. I will also describe actions which could be taken to influence the prevailing culture to further recognize and value software development as a fundamental and crucial aspect of the entire astronomical research process. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7719585

1. The Trials and Tribulations of
Software Development in Astronomy:
Where are we now and where can we go
from here?
Kelle Cruz
CUNY Hunter College

2. Astro at the
City University of New York (CUNY)
• Hunter College is a 4-year college
in the CUNY system
• PhD program based at the
CUNY Graduate Center
• CUNY Astronomers joined
together to form CUNY Astro,
based at the American
Museum of Natural History (AMNH)

3. • ~15 Astro Faculty at various CUNY
campuses
• Galactic, Extragalactic, Cosmology,
Theory, Computational, Observers.
• American Museum of Natural
History is our central location
cunyastro.org

4. Comparative Brown Dwarf-Exoplanet Studies
.org

5. More Astro in New York City

6. New Masters in Astro Program
• Collaboration between
www.gc.cuny.edu/astrophysics
• Two year program combining coursework and a
Masters’ research thesis.
• Prepare students for success in a future PhD program
via research experiences, coursework, and community.
• Provide students with immediately marketable
advanced degree for STEM employment.
• Joint program between CUNY Astro and Center for
Computational Astronomy.
• Full funding thanks to the Simons Foundation.
Masters in
Astrophysics

7. Science was…

8. Science is Software

9. Science was…
Photo credit: Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

10. Science is Software
Photo credit: Jeyhan Kartaltepe

11. Software permeates our field
• “Little” scripts
• Small packages
• Big packages
• “Enterprise”
• Simulations
• Models
• And much more…
Kelle Cruz, March 2023
Credit: NOIRLab

12. And yet…
We are not taught how to
use computers to do
astronomy.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

13. Astro2020 Decadal Survey:
Better than Astro 2010!
Finding:
Software development has become an essential part of
every sub-field of astronomy.
However, software developers and large software
development efforts are not adequately funded or supported
by existing structures.
But no “Recommendations”.
And nothing about software education.Kelle Cruz, March 2023

14. I care about maximizing efficiency of science
The goal of this blog, AstroBetter, is to provide
information and tips about streamlining all the ways
we use our Macs everyday.

15. Traditional Methods:
Information
sharing
increases
productivity

16. Information
sharing
increases
productivity
Modern Methods:

17. Information
sharing
increases
equity
Modern Methods:

18. We are not taught how to
use computers to do
science.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

19. The Looming Diversity Disaster
Software development and computational
training remains a privilege
AND
Software dev skills are now necessary to
succeed in astro
THUS
the current landscape exacerbates the
already un-level playing field.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

20. Inclusive practices, education, &
broadening participation in
software development
needs to be a huge priority for
all programs.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023
The Looming Diversity Disaster

21. Science should be
reproducible/replicable
same data + same methods =
same results
Modified from https://xkcd.com/242/
https://arxiv.org/abs/1802.03311 - Barba 2018.

22. Describing code is hard
“To calculate distances and areas on the solar-disc, firstly helioprojective
coordinates are converted to heliographic coordinates using the world coordinate
system available in the standard solar data analysis software…”
doi: 10.1007/s11207-015-0808-7
Courtesy Danny Ryan
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

23. We need to
share our
scripts
• Normalize making code visible even if it’s embarrassing.
• Looking at code should be a normal and expected part of the
peer review process.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023
Copyright: © bakhtiarzein - stock.adobe.com

24. We need to
test our
code
Integration tests are just as important as uncertainty
propagation.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

25. Education must change
https://xkcd.com/519/

26. Software Syllabus
• The shell
• Basic programming
• Environment management
• Software engineering: Github,
testing, documentation
• Advanced programming:
parallelization, optimization
• (Anything is better than nothing.)
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

27. Current Learning Methods
• Self-taught: StackExchange, etc
• Research: Advisors, group-
mates.
• Workshops: Software carpentry,
Astropy, etc
• Online tutorials
• Topical Workshops: Gaia, LSST,
etc.
• LSSTC Data Science
Fellowship
• Hackdays & hackweeks
• Programming hours and study
groups
• Some Coursework
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

28. What we need
• Recognition of the problem.
• Willingness to do the work of changing curriculum.
• Instructor training and resources.
• Intro textbooks with readings and assignments.
• More tutorials and better tutorial discoverability & indexing.
• Degree program flexibility to take courses in other
departments and/or via other institutions.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

29. Photo credit: Cablelabs.com
LICENSE

30. Open Source Definition
Software whose source code is made
available under an open source license.
An open source license grants anyone the rights to
inspect, modify and distribute the code
(with some possible caveats).
https://opensource.org/osd Kelle Cruz, March 2023

31. Open Source Misconceptions
Putting code on my webpage makes it open.
No license = copyright, all rights reserved.
Nobody else can use, copy, distribute, or modify your work
without being at risk of take-downs or litigation.
True
False
True
False
https://choosealicense.com/no-permission/ Kelle Cruz, March 2023

32. Open Source Misconceptions
If I make my code open, I must support and maintain it.
Making code open means other people can
use and modify it,
even if you abandon it.
True
False
True
False
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

33. Open Source Misconceptions
Anyone can participate in the development of open code
Code can be distributed with an open
source license but
developed behind closed doors
True
False
True
False
Kelle Cruz, March 2023

34. NASA Open-Source Science Initiative
SMD’s new policy on Scientific Information
As open as possible, as restricted as necessary, always secure
● Publications are made openly available with no embargo period.
● Research data and software are shared at the time of publication.
● Mission data are released as soon as possible and is freely available.
● Unrestricted mission software is developed openly.
● Recognizes software as a scientific product.
● Data should be released with Creative Commons Zero and software with
permissive, commonly used licenses
● Encourages using and contributing to Open Source Software.
Scientific Information Policy Website & FAQ
NASA Open-Source Science Initiative
SMD-41a
Slide credit NASA and Steve Crawford

35. NASA Open-Source Science Initiative
Sustaining Open Source Software
NASA selected 16
proposals in 2021
supporting 22 different open
source projects to provide
sustainable support.
NASA Open-Source Science Initiative
NASA is putting money where its mouth is
Slide credit NASA and Steve Crawford

36. NASA is putting money where its mouth is
5
NASA OSSI Funding
F.15 High Priority
Open-Source Science
Supporting innovative open
source tools, software,
frameworks, data formats, and
libraries.
F.16 Supplement for
Software Platforms
Supplemental support to existing
awards for usage of scientific
platforms. Budget TBD.
F.14 Transform to Open
Science Training
Tutorials showcasing open
science in action and NASA
cloud data, summer schools,
virtual cohorts.
F.2 Topical Workshops,
Symposia, and Conferences
Events, Hackathons,
un-conferences, and challenges
that build open science skills,
Training in open science. Rolling
deadline.
F.7 Support for Open Source
Tools, Frameworks, and
Libraries
Support and maintain open
source tools, frameworks, and
libraries that are significantly
used by the SMD community.
F.8 Supplemental Open
Source Software Awards
Supplemental award to
encourage the modernization of
legacy software and release as
open source.
NASA OPEN-SOURCE SCIENCE INITIATIVE
Slide credit NASA and Steve Crawford

37. NASA Open-Source Science Initiative
NASA Transform to Open Science (TOPS)
A $40 million, 5-year mission to accelerate adoption of open science
Strategic Goals:
● Support 20K researchers to earn NASA's open science badge
● Double the participation of historically excluded groups across
NASA science
● Enable five major scientific discoveries through open science
principles
Engagement Incentives Coordination
Capacity Sharing
Join us as we embark on the 2023 Year of Open Science with NASA TOPS!
6
NASA is putting money where its mouth is
Slide credit NASA and Steve Crawford

38. Increase the value of software:
Be part of the solution
• Prioritize your own learning.
It’s a rapidly changing landscape. It’s ok to not be an expert, no one is.
• Share all types of code, including scripts.
Ask code to be made available during peer review.
• Encourage open science & software engineering practices,
especially in your research groups.
• Bring open science & software engineering skills into the
classroom & academic programs.
Kelle Cruz, March 2023