code: def _generate_linear_range(start, end, periods):
      
      import cftime
  
      total_seconds = (end - start).total_seconds()
      values = np.linspace(0., total_seconds, periods, endpoint=True)
      units = 'seconds since {}'.format(format_cftime_datetime(start))
      calendar = start.calendar
      return cftime.num2date(values, units=units, calendar=calendar,
                             only_use_cftime_datetimes=True)
docs: Generate an equally-spaced sequence of cftime.datetime objects between
      and including two dates (whose length equals the number of periods).