Python – A-Star ( A* ) search algorithm implementation

In computer science, A* (pronounced "A star") is a computer algorithm that is widely used in pathfinding and graph traversal, the process of plotting an efficiently traversable path between points, called nodes. Noted for its performance and accuracy, it enjoys widespread use. (However, in practical travel-routing systems, it is generally outperformed by algorithms which can pre-process the graph to attain better performance.)
Peter Hart, Nils Nilsson and Bertram Raphael of Stanford Research Institute (now SRI International) first described the algorithm in 1968. It is an extension of Edsger Dijkstra's 1959 algorithm. A* achieves better time performance by using heuristics.