Lightning

Lightning#

lightning.py is the python version of the Lightning SED-fitting code. The goal of the project is to maintain Lightning’s primary design philosophy of simplicity and physically-based models, while taking advantage of Python’s object-oriented nature and the wide array of pre-existing astronomical Python code to improve modularity and user-friendliness.

The IDL version of Lightning is now considered the “legacy” version, and will not see further development. Its documentation will remain available at lightning-sed.readthedocs.io, and the source code can still be downloaded from github.com/rafaeleufrasio/lightning.

This new python version contains all the features of IDL Lightning with the current notable exception of the Doore et al. (2021) inclination-dependent attenuation model. Users interested in the properties of highly-inclined disk galaxies are encouraged to continue to use IDL Lightning for their analyses, and to let the authors know if it would be nice to access that model through lightning.py.

Documentation

Attribution#

A paper describing lightning.py is forthcoming by Monson et al.; this page will be updated on submission. In the meantime, work using the new PEGASE+Cloudy and BPASS+Cloudy models are encouraged to also cite Lehmer et al. (2024, in press at ApJS):

@ARTICLE{2024arXiv241019901L,
    author = {{Lehmer}, Bret D. and {Monson}, Erik B. and {Eufrasio}, Rafael T. and {Amiri}, Amirnezam and {Doore}, Keith and {Basu-Zych}, Antara and {Garofali}, Kristen and {Oskinova}, Lidia and {Andrews}, Jeff J. and {Antoniou}, Vallia and {Geda}, Robel and {Greene}, Jenny E. and {Kovlakas}, Konstantinos and {Lazzarini}, Margaret and {Richardson}, Chris T.},
    title = "{An Empirical Framework Characterizing the Metallicity and Star-Formation History Dependence of X-ray Binary Population Formation and Emission in Galaxies}",
    journal = {arXiv e-prints},
    keywords = {Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies, Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena},
    year = 2024,
    month = oct,
    eid = {arXiv:2410.19901},
    pages = {arXiv:2410.19901},
    archivePrefix = {arXiv},
    eprint = {2410.19901},
    primaryClass = {astro-ph.GA},
    adsurl = {https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2024arXiv241019901L},
    adsnote = {Provided by the SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System}
}

Work using models described in Doore et al. (2023) should also cite that paper:

@ARTICLE{2023ApJS..266...39D,
    author = {{Doore}, Keith and {Monson}, Erik B. and {Eufrasio}, Rafael T. and {Lehmer}, Bret D. and {Garofali}, Kristen and {Basu-Zych}, Antara},
    title = "{Lightning: An X-Ray to Submillimeter Galaxy SED-fitting Code with Physically Motivated Stellar, Dust, and AGN Models}",
    journal = {\apjs},
    keywords = {Extragalactic astronomy, Galaxy properties, Star formation, Spectral energy distribution, 506, 615, 1569, 2129, Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies},
    year = 2023,
    month = jun,
    volume = {266},
    number = {2},
    eid = {39},
    pages = {39},
    doi = {10.3847/1538-4365/accc29},
    archivePrefix = {arXiv},
    eprint = {2304.06753},
    primaryClass = {astro-ph.GA},
    adsurl = {https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2023ApJS..266...39D},
    adsnote = {Provided by the SAO/NASA Astrophysics Data System}
}

License#

lightning.py is available under the terms of the MIT license.

Acknowledgments#

lightning.py has been developed by Erik B. Monson, Amirnezam Amiri, Keith Doore, and Rafael Eufrasio. Much of lightning.py is ported from or based on code from IDL Lightning, which was developed by Rafael Eufrasio, Keith Doore, and Erik B. Monson.

Indices and tables#

Contents