Page History
...
- SeaBASS
- NASA Aerogeophysics ASCII File Format Convention (identified as IceBridge in the table below)
- International Consortium for Atmospheric Research on Transport and Transformation (ICARTT) File Format Standards V1.1
- Proposed ICARTT Format Enhancements based on ESDSWG Recommendations
Table
Legend: y = meets criterion; n = does not meet criterion; - = not applicable and/or not required
| Format | |||||
| Section | Requirement / Recommendation | SeaBASS | IceBridge | ICARTT | ICARTT Enhancements |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
General | Create files with separate header and data sections – R1 | y | y | y | y |
| Use a consistent delimiter between data values throughout the file – R1 | y | - | y | y | |
Use escape mechanism if the designated delimiter character appears in text or data – R1 | y | - | - | - | |
| Separate lines of text and rows of data with end-of-line (EOL) character(s), used consistently throughout the file – R1 | y | y | y | y | |
| General Recommendations | Use the standard US-ASCII character set, without extensions – R1 | y | y | y | - |
| Avoid ASCII control characters, except tab or EOL characters – R1 | y | y | - | - | |
| Do not use empty lines or rows – R1 | y | - | - | - | |
| Chose delimiter character to avoid need for escape mechanism – R1 | - | - | y | y | |
| Terminate file with same end-of-line (EOL) character(s) used to separate data rows – R1 | - | - | - | - | |
| Use unique, descriptive file names – R7 | - | - | y | y | |
| Header Section Required | Clearly delineate header section as described in this document – R2 | y | y | y | y |
| List unique variable names (columns) – R2 | y | y | y | y | |
| Define units of measure for each variable – R2 | y | y | y | y | |
| Identify community-specific convention used for data representation and/or units of measure, if applicable – R3 | y | - | - | - | |
| Specify conventions used for latitude, longitude, and elevation if applicable – R4 | y | y | - | - | |
| Identify type of elevation measurement used, if applicable – R4 | y | y | y | y | |
| Indicate which data grid index runs faster, if applicable – R3 | - | - | - | - | |
| Reference any additional documentation needed to understand the data in the file, preferably by DOI – R2 | y | - | y | y | |
| Specify time representation if not using ISO 8601 – R5 | - | y | - | - | |
| Specify time zone and offset if using local time instead of UTC or GMT – R5 | - | - | - | - | |
| Specify single location or time associated with all data in the file, if not specified with each data row – R3 | y | y | y | y | |
| Define missing or out of bounds data fill values, any other flag values – R6 | y | y | y | y | |
| Header Section Recommended | Provide as much metadata as practical, all metadata if possible – R2 | y | y | y | y |
| For each variable, provide long and short names and description – R2 | - | - | y | y | |
| Describe gridding scheme used, if applicable – R3 | - | - | - | - | |
| Define geographic reference frame and ellipsoid – R4 | - | y | - | - | |
| Specify coordinate reference system, and datum if applicable – R4 | - | - | - | - | |
| Document type of location information used – R4 | y | y | y | y | |
| Document location of GPS antenna on aircraft, if applicable – R4 | - | y | - | - | |
| Provide geographic coordinates for place name associated with data – R4 | y | - | - | - | |
| Define time base information, including source of time stamps – R5 | - | y | - | - | |
| Identify time zone from IANA Time Zone Database if using local time – R5 | - | - | - | - | |
| Specify whether time stamps identify start, stop, midpoint or average of measurement period – R5 | - | - | y | y | |
| For averaged or derived products, indicate data collection window – R5 | - | y | - | - | |
| Indicate whether internal computer clocks are synchronized to GPS time or other – R5 | - | y | - | - | |
| Provide principal investigator name and contact information – R2 | y | - | y | y | |
| Provide uncertainty information – R2 | - | - | y | y | |
| Indicate dates of data collection and processing – R2 | y | - | - | - | |
| Provide a record of data revision – R2 | y | - | y | y | |
| Provide data DOI if available – R2 | - | - | - | - | |
| Data Section Required | Organize data as matrix of rows and columns – R1 | y | y | y | y |
| Provide geographic location and/or time tag (as applicable) for each data row or value – R3, R4, R5 | y | y | y | y | |
| Use a designated flag value to indicate missing data when using space or tab delimiters – R1, R6 | y | y | y | y | |
| Do not use daylight savings time if using local time instead of UTC or GMT – R5 | - | - | - | - | |
| Data Section Recommended | Provide lat/lon in format applicable to coordinate reference system used – R4 | y | y | y | y |
| Provide elevation for each data row or value if applicable – R4 | y | y | y | y | |
| Specify elevation in meters – R4 | y | y | - | - | |
| Provide data in SI units, derived units (such as degree Celsius), or non-SI units accepted for use with SI (such as minute, hour, day, mixing ratio data) – R3 | y | y | - | - | |
| Provide date/time in UTC or GMT, following ISO 8601 standard – R5 | y | y | y | y | |
| If time is specified in seconds past some starting point (e.g., midnight) and measurements in the file span date boundaries, assure that time increases monotonically (>86400) and date does not change – R5 | - | y | y | y | |
| Structure data so that consecutive rows have monotonically increasing or unique time tag where applicable – R5 | - | y | y | y | |
| Represent years with four digits – R5 | y | y | y | y | |
| Provide start and stop timestamps for measurements in irregular intervals – R5 | - | - | y | y | |
| Indicate data above or below a limit of detection using a flag value – R6 | - | y | y | y | |
| Represent flags (missing data, etc.) so as not to be construed as data – R6 | y | y | y | y | |
| Provide a separate column for flag values that vary from point to point – R6 | - | - | - | - | |
Overview
Content Tools