Index of RDF Tag Names

Tags for RDF Headers

Height
The number of data rows in the RDF frame

Width
The total number of data columns in the RDF frame

Size
The number of bytes required for each data element in the RDF frame. Height x Width x Size returns the total number of data bytes in the RDF frame.

Format
A string specifying the format of information occupying the data portion of the RDF frame. Currently acceptable values are: RDF_range_1, RDF_spectrum1

A format of "RDF_range_1" implies that a height, width, and size are the only requirements for specifying the image dimensions.

A format of "Rdf_spectrum_1" implies the existence of the following header tags: ndata, nchan, nspec, ntags.

Type
The data type corresponding to a data element in the RDF frame. Currently acceptable types are: byte, char, int, float, double, and complex.

Machine
The type of hardware on which the binary data was written. This information is used to correctly decode data ported across platforms.

nchan
Applies only to RDF data that contain CW spectra. The number of different channels of CW spectra occupying a single RDF frame. If nchan is > 1, the implication is that spectra taken simultaneously on different channels follow each other in an agreed order. For example, nchan = 2 implies that successive RDF rows are are OC spectrum followed by an SC spectrum.

There is currently no mechanism for specifying the order, but the tag value "JCP" can be read to discover the polarization of any spectrum.

The number of spectral pairs in an image can be calculated using
npairs = nspec

ndata
Applies only to RDF data that contain CW spectra. The number of elements at the beginning of each row that are binary power spectrum data.

width = ndata + ntags

ntags
Applies only to RDF data that contain CW spectra. The number of binary tags occupying elements at the end of each row of CW data.

nspec
Applies only to RDF data that contain CW spectra. Identifies the number of cw spectra in the data set. Usually identical to the height value.

Tags for RDF Image Tails

Year
Four digit year of observation. Integer
Iday
Day-of-Year of observation (1-365)
Sta_rcv
The start receive time in seconds of day. (0-86400)
Baudlen
The length, in microseconds, of the delay resolution baud.
Floating point precision
Fres
The frequency resolution, in Hertz, of the data.

CW Tag Names

RCSTA
The start receive time in seconds of day
RCEND
The end receive time in seconds of day
RCHOUR
The weighted average receive time in seconds of day
RCMIN
RCSEC
RCNSEC
NFFTS
The number of fft's summed to generate this spectrum
ELEV
The weighted average telescope elevation angle
AZIM
The weighted average telescope azimuth
RTTIM
The weighted average round trip light time to the target
DOPPL
IDD
The integer day of month
IMM
The integer month
IYY
The four digit year
ZEPCH
The epoch of a zero phase orientation of the target with respect to the Earth
PHASE
The instantaneous synodic spin period of the target, in hours.
OBS
1 if Goldstone, 2 if Arecibo
ITAR
IRUN
The run sequence number
JGROUP
LFFT
The fft length
IGW
DFREQ
The frequency resolution of the spectrum, in Hertz
TAU
The total integration time
RMSC
RMSM
XJCEN
The nominal (a-priori or a-posteriori) ephemeris prediction for the zero-doppler frequency element, counting from 1 on the left.
JSNR1
JSNR2
KPTS
JCP
The polarization sense: 1- for OC; 2- for SC
POSFR
1 if frequency values increase by dfreq/element from left to right, -1 one if frequency values decrease by dfreq/element from left to right.
TRPWR
The weighted average transmit power
TSYS
The weighted average system temperature
GAIN
The weighted average system gain
SDEV
The kilometer-square radar cross section equivalent of one standard deviation of the noise.
CROSS
The spectrum radar cross section in km^2.
CRERR
The formal error in the cross section estimate, in km^2
NFREQ
The number of frequency hops in the raw data.
FRSTEP
COLOR
FREQ1
UTIL