blobmodel

Spec sheet

Purpose

blobmodel is a Python package for creating numerical realizations of advecting and dissipating blobs in up to two spatial dimensions.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Free plan

YesRead 23 Sep 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

3D visuals

NoRead 23 Sep 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Authoring tools

YesRead 23 Sep 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Blob shapes

Supported shape choices include exponential, Lorentz, double exponential, Gaussian, secant, dipole, and rectangular.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Custom parameters

Users can implement a custom BlobFactory to define blob parameters individually; they are responsible for ensuring variables have correct dimensions and manually normalizing parameters if needed.Read 11 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Data export

YesRead 23 Sep 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Installation

The documentation provides installation from PyPI with `pip install blobmodel`.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Intended research

The project was originally developed to study the scrape-off layer of fusion experiments and may apply to other one- or two-dimensional systems.Read 12 Oct 2026 · github.com

Label output

Users can add same-region or per-blob integer labels to the output dataset, which the documentation notes may help create supervised machine-learning training data.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Machine learning use

The optional blob_labels field can label occupied regions or individual blobs, and the documentation says it can be useful for supervised machine learning training datasets.Read 11 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Model setup

A model lets users specify grid dimensions, domain lengths, time step, time length, initial time, blob shape, drainage time, and blob count.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

One-dimensional mode

Setting `one_dimensional` to true discards the perpendicular blob shape and sets `Ny=1` and `Ly=0`.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Open source

The documentation describes blobmodel as an open source project developed by the Complex Systems Modelling group at UiT The Arctic University of Norway.Read 11 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Output

A realization is returned as an xarray dataset and can be saved locally by passing a filename to `make_realization`.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Parameter distributions

The default factory supports distributions for blob amplitudes, widths, velocities, pulse shapes, alignment, and tilt, and users can implement a custom factory.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Periodic boundary behavior

With `periodic_y` enabled, blobs leaving the domain in the y direction enter at the opposite end; the docs caution that the y domain should be large compared with blob widths.Read 11 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Periodic boundary caveat

The documentation advises using y-periodicity only when the y-domain is large compared with blob widths and says the code warns when a blob width is less than `0.1 * Ly`.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Support and contribution

The project invites users to report bugs or request features on GitHub and contribute pull requests.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Visualization

The package provides `show_model` to plot a model realization as an animation.Read 12 Oct 2026 · blobmodel.readthedocs.io

Where Specifiction places it

• Physics Simulation Software#81 of 896.9