The Mars Global Surveyor SPICE Data Archive
========================================================================
Introduction
============
This document provides an overview of the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS)
SPICE data set, including a description of the directory structure.
Additional documents included on this data set provide more details,
especially the ``spiceds.cat'' dataset description and the various
kernel-specific ``/data/*/*info.txt'' files.
This data set contains navigation and related observation geometry
and other ancillary data in the form of SPICE System kernel files
for the MGS spacecraft. See the file ``mission.cat'' in the
``/catalog'' directory for a description of the mission and the file
``insthost.cat'' in the same directory for a description of the
spacecraft.
The SPICE kernel files contain geometric and other ancillary
information needed to recover the full value of science instrument
data. Data in the SPICE kernel files must be accessed using the NAIF
(Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility) software called the
SPICE Toolkit. See the file ``softinfo.txt'' in the ``/software''
directory for instructions on how to obtain this software.
This data set is contained on a single virtual volume, MGSP_1000,
including data from all mission phases and covering from launch
through the end time of the mission.
Initially this data set was released on multiple volumes, each
containing the complete set of SPICE kernels for two or more mission
phases, a single mission phase or a portion of a mission phase.
During the transition to the PDS on-line distribution system at the
end of 2002 the data from all volumes were segregated on a single
volume, MGSP_1000. The coverages of the original volumes are
summarized in the table:
VOLUME ID START TIME STOP TIME
--------- ------------------- -------------------
MGSP_0001 1996-11-06T08:00:00 1998-05-28T00:00:00
MGSP_0002 1998-05-28T00:00:00 1999-03-09T00:00:00
MGSP_0003 1999-03-09T01:00:00 1999-06-02T00:00:00
MGSP_0004 1999-06-02T00:00:00 1999-08-25T00:00:00
MGSP_0005 1999-08-25T00:00:00 1999-11-17T00:00:00
MGSP_0006 1999-11-17T00:00:00 2000-02-09T00:00:00
MGSP_0007 2000-02-09T00:00:00 2000-05-03T00:00:00
MGSP_0008 2000-05-03T00:00:00 2000-07-26T00:00:00
MGSP_0009 2000-07-26T00:00:00 2000-10-18T00:00:00
MGSP_0010 2000-10-18T00:00:00 2001-02-01T00:00:00
File Formats
============
All text documents and other meta information files such as
descriptions, PDS object definitions and detached PDS labels are
stream format files, with a carriage return (ASCII 13) and a line
feed character (ASCII 10) at the end of the record. This allows the
files to be read by MS-DOS/Windows, Unix and MacOS operating
systems.
The data files in this data set were prepared to be used under a
UNIX environment. Therefore all SPICE text kernel files are UNIX
text files, with a line feed character (ASCII 10) at the end of the
line, and all SPICE binary kernels files are UNIX binary files in
which bit pattern structures for double precision and integer
numbers follow the IEEE standard. While some of the data files on
this volume can be used 'as is', converting the files to binary or
text format native to the user's computer may be required. Refer to
the documentation provided with the SPICE Toolkit to find out
whether conversion is needed in each specific case.
NAIF provides a tool (BINGO) that can convert either binary or text
kernels from one format to another. This means that text files can
have their line terminator changed and binary files can be converted
to the native format of the platform of interest. For access to this
tool, see the reference to the NAIF utilities website in the file
``/software/softinfo.txt''.
Volume Contents
===============
Files on this volume are organized into a set of subdirectories
below the top-level directory. The following table shows the
structure and content of these directories. In this table, directory
names are enclosed in square brackets ([]). See the ``*info.txt''
files in each directory for specific information on the files in the
directory, including naming schemes.
[top-level-directory]
|
|-- aareadme.txt Text version of the aareadme file.
|-- aareadme.htm HTML version of the aareadme file.
|-- aareadme.lbl PDS label for both aareadme files.
|-- errata.txt Comments and errata on this volume.
|-- voldesc.cat Description of the contents of this volume.
|
|--[catalog] Directory containing PDS catalog objects.
| |
| |-- catinfo.txt Description of files in the catalog directory.
| |-- insthost.cat Description of the spacecraft.
| |-- mission.cat Description of the mission.
| |-- person.cat References for personnel who created this volume.
| |-- ref.cat List of publications mentioned in *.cat files.
| |-- release.cat Description of the data set releases.
| |-- spiceds.cat Description of the SPICE data set.
| |-- spice_hsk.cat Description of housekeeping (browser) information.
| +-- spice_inst.cat Description of SPICE kernels.
|
|--[data] Directory containing SPICE data files (kernels.)
| |
| |--[ck] Directory containing CK files.
| | |
| | |-- ckinfo.txt Description of files in the data/ck directory.
| | |-- *.bc CK files.
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for CK files.
| |
| |--[ek] Directory containing EK files.
| | |
| | |-- ekinfo.txt Description of files in the data/ek directory.
| | |-- *.bdb EK database files.
| | |-- *.bes EK sequence files.
| | |-- *.ten EK Experimenter's Notebook files.
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for EK files.
| |
| |--[fk] Directory containing FK file(s).
| | |
| | |-- fkinfo.txt Description of files in the data/fk directory.
| | |-- *.tf FK file(s).
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for FK files.
| |
| |--[ik] Directory containing IK files.
| | |
| | |-- ikinfo.txt Description of files in the data/ik directory.
| | |-- *.ti IK files.
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for IK files.
| |
| |--[lsk] Directory containing LSK files.
| | |
| | |-- lskinfo.txt Description of files in the data/lsk directory.
| | |-- *.tls LSK file(s).
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for LSK files.
| |
| |--[pck] Directory containing PCK file(s).
| | |
| | |-- pckinfo.txt Description of files in the data/pck directory.
| | |-- *.tpc Text PCK file(s).
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for PCK files.
| |
| |--[sclk] Directory containing SCLK file(s).
| | |
| | |-- sclkinfo.txt Description of files in the data/sclk directory.
| | |-- *.tsc SCLK file(s).
| | +-- *.lbl PDS labels for SCLK files.
| |
| +--[spk] Directory containing SPK files.
| |
| |-- spkinfo.txt Description of files in the data/spk directory.
| |-- *.bsp SPK files.
| +-- *.lbl PDS labels for SPK files.
|
|--[document] Directory containing volume related documents.
| |
| |-- docinfo.txt Description of files in the document directory.
| |-- onlabels.txt Description of PDS labels for SPICE kernels.
| +-- lblinfo.txt Description of PDS label location in this volume.
|
|--[extras] Directory containing extra data elements.
| |
| |-- extrinfo.txt Description of files and directories in extras.
| |
| |--[mk] Directory containing meta-kernels.
| | |
| | |-- mkinfo.txt Description of meta-kernel files.
| | +-- *.tm Meta-kernel files.
| |
| +--[orbnum] Directory containing orbit number files.
| |
| |-- orbinfo.txt Description of orbit number files.
| |-- *.orb ``periapsis-to-periapsis'' orbit number files.
| +-- *.nrb ``node-to-node'' orbit number files.
|
|--[index] Directory containing index files.
| |
| |-- indxinfo.txt Description of files in the index directory.
| |-- checksum.tab Table of MD5 checksums for files in this data set.
| |-- checksum.lbl PDS label for checksum.tab file.
| |-- index.tab Index table of SPICE kernels on this volume.
| +-- index.lbl PDS label for index.tab file.
|
+--[software]
|
+-- softinfo.txt Instructions on how to obtain SPICE software.
Whom to Contact for Information
===============================
PDS Navigation and Ancillary Information Facility (NAIF),
MAIL STOP 301-121
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
California Institute of Technology
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA, 91109-8099
818-354-3869
WWW Site: http://naif.jpl.nasa.gov
Electronic mail address: pds_operator@naif.jpl.nasa.gov
Cognizant Persons
=================
This volume was designed and produced by Boris Semenov and Lee
Elson, Planetary Data System Navigation and Ancillary Information
Facility Node, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.