Contents of RDP Archive Tape Summary Files

For each tape in the NCAR RDP data tape archive, there is a file summarizing the contents of that tape. These summary files are available on-line through Mosaic, and can also be made available for access via anonymous ftp.

The general objective of the summary file is to provide enough information for a user to be able to position the tape to a desired time period or item of data. Toward this end, the summary file almost always provides a correlated list of file number and data date/time or, alternately, the file number related to a platform or data system name. Information on the tape format is often provided in the summary file, either explicitly, or encoded in the RDP name for that file.

Contents Vary by Data Type

The specific contents of a summary file vary somewhat by data type.

For radar data (which make up the bulk of the RDP archives), the content is highly stylized, providing a list of file number, filename (in an RDP radar filenaming convention), and file length (in bytes). A typical line from an ATD radar tape summary file has the format:

	nn   plt_yymmdd.hhmm_fmt      byte_len
Here,
	nn      = file_number
	plt     = platform_name
	yymmdd  = date of data in yymmdd format
	hhmm    = time of data (timezone unspecified)
	fmt     =  data format  
Note that the length of these field components may vary somewhat, and that, on occasion, the format information may be missing (in which case ATD radar Field Format is generally assumed), or the format may appear in place of the platform name. For an example of an ATD "field format" radar summary file, click here; for an example of an ELDORA radar summary file (in DORADE format), click here. Finally, for an example of an ELDORA radar summary file in Universal Format, click here.

For UNIX "tar" tapes, information is generally less stylized (but somewhat more specific!). For an example of summary information for an SSSF Sounding tape (data from TOGA-COARE), click here.

Data Tape "Details" File

Detailed information for a data tape is often available, also. The detailed information may be a listing of all radar scans, or the complete listing of all tar'ed files on a given tar tape. Again, for more information, click here.


This information prepared by Bob Rilling, NCAR Research Data Program