The Data Collection and Positioning System is a sensor that returns low-volume sensor data along with the platform`s position. These platforms can be stationary, routinely reporting environmental parameters, be fixed in ice sheets that move to monitor ice motion and parameters, or set adrift at sea to return ocean and atmospheric parameters along with ocean current speeds.
The TeraScan system provides software to process Data Collection System (DCS) data. Like AVHRR processing, the DCS processing is done in a pipeline format.
The first step in processing DCS data is to extract the raw DCS data from the HRPT header. This is done with the dcsin function.
Once the raw data has been extracted, latitude and longitudes for the observations should be computed. This is done with the function dcsloc.
The function dcslist lists the position and platform identification numbers along with a hexadecimal report of the raw DCS data. This function is particularly useful when conversion programs do not exist to convert the raw DCS data to engineering units.
TeraScan has several function to convert raw DCS platform data to engineering units. These functions, however, are customized for each platform. The names end in xxxegu, as in mcmegu. Contact SeaSpace to find out if engineering units conversion programs exist for specific buoys.
Data that has been converted to engineering units can be merged and then sorted by platform ID or date with dcsmix. Data can also be overlaid on satellite images using tracks, weather, and the XVU function, or the TeraVision application.
Last Update: $Date: 2002/02/09 02:49:44 $