I IRAF 2025?

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By 2025, IRAF's prevalence in astronomy appears to be declining, with many in academia and research shifting towards alternatives like Astropy and Pyraf. While IRAF was dominant in the early 2000s and still relevant in the 2010s, its usage for real-world telescope installations may be waning. Observational Astronomy courses may not prioritize IRAF anymore, reflecting a broader trend towards modern software tools for image reduction. The discussion highlights uncertainty about current teaching practices and the tools being used in educational settings. Overall, there seems to be a significant transition away from IRAF in favor of newer technologies.
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TL;DR Summary
Wondering what the current trend in Academia and research is regarding IRAF
Hi, I was wondering how prevalent/popular IRAF is in 2025. When I studied in 2001 it was dominant. Last I really played with image reduction in the 2010s it was still fairly important. I am guessing most service observers still use it for real-world telescope installations.

Or is Astropy or Pyraf becoming more common? Or something else? If I took an Observational Astronomy course today, would I still have a high chance of IRAF being taught?
 
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mishima said:
TL;DR Summary: Wondering what the current trend in Academia and research is regarding IRAF
For the non-cognoscenti (like me!):
IRAF (Image Reduction and Analysis Facility) is a collection of software written at the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) geared towards the reduction of astronomical images and spectra in pixel array form.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IRAF)
 
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Could it be that indeed mostly everyone has moved on from IRAF in 2025?

Is anyone teaching an Observational Astronomy course with data reduction techniques? Curious what is used these days in place of IRAF.
 
Not sure. This question may be too specific for our member base to be honest. We don't have a huge number of professors and such.
 

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