[Geopy][] is a [[Python]] package providing a simple interface to
convert place names to coordinates and perform basic ellipsoidal
geometry.  Here's an excerpt from the [tutorial][]:

>>> from geopy import geocoders, distance
>>> g = geocoders.Google()
>>> ny,(ny_lat,ny_lng) = g.geocode('New York, NY')  
>>> nas,(nas_lat,nas_lng) = g.geocode('Nassau, Bahamas')  
>>> distance.distance((ny_lat, ny_lng), (nas_lat, nas_lng)).nautical
952.2940284055431

[Geopy]: https://github.com/geopy/geopy
[tutorial]: http://code.google.com/p/geopy/wiki/GettingStarted

[[!tag tags/python]]
[[!tag tags/tools]]