Upgrade to Python 3.11

[Yarik-Popov]

Purpose

When Python 3.10 was chosen for GS, it was expected that work on the backend would start a lot sooner i.e. S24 when version 3.11 was still in it's bug fix stage. Since, the start of work on the backend was delayed until W25, Python 3.11 is now in stable/security releases. As such it is now considered stable for GS development.

This PR upgrades the main repo to use 3.11. This version adds new features and improved performance with very little that must be done by GS developers to migrate (See below for Migration instructions). Also, the end of life has been extend by 1 year from Oct 2026 (Python 3.10) to Oct 2027 (Python 3.11).

Migration Instructions

1. Delete your existing python virtual environment directory used for this repo. Typically the directory is called .venv or venv
2. Follow the setup instructions for the backend in the README

• Step 2 of the setup instructions for MacOS and Linux users
• Step 3B of the setup instructions for WSL Windows

New Changes

• Update README with instructions on how to install Python 3.11
• Update python configuration files to use version 3.11
• Update Github actions to use Python 3.11 where applicable
• Minor README improvements

Testing

• CI/CD
• Backend starts successfully
  

Outstanding Changes

• Upgrade Python when 3.11 approaches end of life (good to upgrade around W27 or S27 at the latest) or sooner if desirable

Additional Notes

• Upgraded GS onboarding Python 3.11 version with this PR: Upgrade to Python 3.11 GS-Onboarding#12

[github-actions]

Pull reviewers stats

Stats of the last 120 days for UWOrbital:

	User	Total reviews	Time to review	Total comments
	Yarik-Popov	21	1d 16h 50m	245
	kepler452b123	19	2d 6h 44m	90
	Navtajh04	3	2d 19h 35m	32
	dgobalak	2	5d 13h 35m	11

^{⚡️ Pull request stats}

[kepler452b123]

lgtm