Deploying M⁴OPT

M⁴OPT is an observation planning toolkit. It can be deployed in much the same way as one would use the Astropy Python library, i.e., import m4opt. However, since M⁴OPT will be deployed in planning operations, there are several risks that users must be aware of.

1. Lack of Licensing for Gurobi and CPLEX

M⁴OPT utilizes mixed-integer linear programming in order to find and schedule optimal observing plans across multiple observatories. It primarily uses commercial libraries, specifically Gurobi and CPLEX. These require licenses (or connection to a license server) for operation, although academic licenses are also available.

M⁴OPT is also planned to support some non-commercial, open-source solvers. However, these are not anticipated to perform nearly as well as the commercial solvers.

2. Access failures due to lack of internet access

Since M⁴OPT uses the Astropy.coordinates module to identify observatory and target locations, users should know that SkyCoord.from_name and EarthLocation.of_site both require an internet connection to access remote data. If M⁴OPT must be deployed offline, users should consider saving a list of SkyCoord and EarthLocation corresponding to needed locations, as mentioned in the Astropy documentation.

Lack of internet access may also affect connection to a license server (see point 1).

Risk Assessment Matrix

A risk assessment matrix is a tool used in systems engineering to aid in the evaluation of project risks. It is used to identify risks, assess their frequency (or likelihood), and evaluate their potential impact (e.g., damage or service interruption).

In the matrix, the likelihood (on the vertical axis) and consequence (on the horizontal axis) are measured from 1 - 5, with 5 being the most likely (or most consequential). The cells in the matrix are shaded red, yellow, or green: these correspond to high, medium, or low risk.

M⁴OPT’s risk assessment matrix is as follows:

Likelihood	5
	4			2
	3
	2		1
	1
		1	2	3	4	5
		Consequences

List of Risks

ID: Example

Title: Example Title

Affinity: Code, External, Cost, Schedule, Project Requirements, Process, Resources

Description/Status: This is an example risk that is described here.

Mitigation: Plan to mitigate (if any)

Likelihood: Very Low, Low, Moderate, High, Very High

Consequence: Very Low, Low, Moderate, High, Very High

ID: 1

Title: Lack of Internet Access

Affinity: External

Description/Status: Some astropy commands require internet access, namely SkyCoord.from_name and EarthLocation.of_site. Depending on how targets and observatory locations will be defined in the user code, this may impact M⁴OPT usability.

Mitigation: Raise awareness and document wherever needed.

Likelihood: Low

Consequence: Low

ID: 2

Title: Lack of Solver Licensing

Affinity: External

Description/Status: M⁴OPT has dependencies on several mixed-integer linear programming solvers, specifically CPLEX and Gurobi. These libraries require paid commercial licenses, though academic licenses are available. This will impact program performance if user does not have access to CPLEX or Gurobi.

Mitigation: Provide interface to open-source libraries. Document differences in results and run-time between open-source MILP solvers, CPLEX, and Gurobi.

Likelihood: High

Consequence: Moderate