TeraScan File Structure

The layout of the TeraScan directories and files is presented here.
 

$TSCANROOT (/opt/terascan)

These are the first-level subdirectories of the $TSCANROOT directory, which contains all the TeraScan-related subdirectories and files installed on your system, except for the user-specific files, which are located in $HOME/.terascan.

Acrobat4/

Directory for Adobe Acrobat reader for PDF online user manuals.

bin/

Executable TeraScan functions.

html/
    html/man1/
    html/man3/
    html/man5/
    html/man7/
    html/man8/
    html/SatTV/
    html/teracon/
    html/terapgs/
    html/teravision/
    html/tkconfig/
    html/trackeye/

Online help pages.
    Help pages for TeraScan user functions.
    Help pages for TeraScan programming functions.
    Help pages for TeraScan reference files.
    Overview help pages.
    Help pages for system maintenance functions.
    Help pages for Satellite Weather TV GUI.
    Help pages for TeraCapCon GUI.
    Help pages for TeraPGS GUI.
    Help pages for TeraVision GUI.
    Help pages for Configuration Editor GUI.
    Help pages for the Tracking Monitor GUI.

include/

Programming include files.

lib/

Programming libraries.

netscape/

Directory for Netscape for HTML help pages.

pass/

($PASSDIR) Directories and files related to satellite pass capture. [See $PASSDIR ($TSCANROOT/pass) for contents of this directory.]

pass/satel/

($SATDATA) Satellite reference data. [See $SATDATA ($TSCANROOT/pass/satel) for contents of this directory.]

refdata/

($REFDATA) TeraScan reference data. [See $REFDATA ($TSCANROOT/refdata) for contents of this directory.]

rpmdata/

What software is installed.

share/tsuser/

Directory containing the script make_tsuser, used to set up a new TeraScan user, and default .login and .dtprofile files.  The new user account should already be created and listed in /etc/passwd before you run this script.

$PASSDIR ($TSCANROOT/pass)

The following is a brief description of the subdirectories and files of the $PASSDIR directory. Files are binary unless otherwise noted.

BAST

ASCII file that defines pass partitions for storage of newly acquired pass data (the number of partitions, their sizes and locations, and the telemetry each stores. This file can be edited via the TeraScan Pass Table Editor.

Coast

Coast overlay metafile used for the pass coverage display area of TeraCapCon and XCapCon. This file is created by the function newsite, which is run as part of system setup. It is generated from the $REFDATA/coast/wdb2.thin database.

Grid

Grid overlay metafile used for the pass coverage display area of TeraCapCon and XCapCon. This file is created by the function newsite, which is run as part of system setup.

Master

Background map projection used for the pass coverage display area of TeraCapCon and XCapCon. This file is created by the function newsite, which is run as part of system setup.
    The center of Master is defined in the $PASSDIR/last_location file. Master size is 1000 x 2000, pixel resolution is 8-km, and map projection is oblique stereo.

SHMEM_ACC

Shared memory file, used by capture processes for both control and data storage.

antenna/antenna.calib

ASCII file containing calibration values specific to each antenna on the system. These values are "corrections" relative to the initial values found in the $REFDATA/config/antenna.config file.
    When the system is first set up, there is no antenna.calib file. The initial value for each setting is obtained from the antenna specifications in the antenna.config file.

antenna/tracksX

ASCII files containing pointing commands to the antenna. There is a separate file for each telemetry chain (X= chain number). The file will contain the pointing commands (elevation and azimuth for each position) of the last pass captured until the file is overwritten with the commands of an upcoming pass just prior to the start of the pass.

ant_lock_XXX

Lock file used to guarantee the antenna exclusive access to the serial port. XXX= device base name, e.g., dev_term_b.

autosched

File containing the user-defined rules that prescribe which passes are to be scheduled for capture. The user sets up these autoschedule rules from TeraCapCon (or XCapCon).
You can use listauto to view the autoschedule rules in this file.
You can list Autoscheduled passes in TeraCapCon or use peekauto to list passes that will be scheduled (added to $PASSDIR/schedlist) based on the rules in this file the next time autosched2 runs.

daemons/Index

List of daemons running or supposed to be running (tsched, sunclock, whereami, ups_monitor, nmea_monitor).

daemons/tsched.hb

Daemon heartbeat (hb) file. Tracks the health of the daemon.

devtable

ASCII file listing tape devices and their characteristics, used by archive and ingest functions.

distrib/

Product distribution and notification databases set up from the TeraPGS GUI.

drivers/s56dsp/driver/driver_load

Executable shell script invoked by tscan.rc.local to load the DSP driver.

last_location

ASCII file containing latitude/longitude coordinates of the location of the system and time correction. Initially, this file is created by the newsite function, which is run as part of system setup. On a system that has a GPS, this file is updated periodically by the whereami and sunclock daemons.

logfiles/

Directory containing a rotating series of ASCII files, one for each captured pass (schedjob.1.A to schedjob.1.Z and schejob.2.A to schedjob.2.Z.).
    Each file contains messages concerning the capture job and subsequent user-defined post-capture processing. These files are useful for diagnostics. The contents of these files can be viewed via the Log Viewer.

masters/

Directory containing the master datasets available to TeraScan functions and GUIs. Users create and modify masters from the TeraMaster GUI.

onlinecat

File listing online passes, the most recently captured raw passes stored online. The maximum number of online passes is determined by the $PASSDIR/BAST file.
You can list Online passes in TeraCapCon or use lspass or llpass to look at the contents of this file.

passcat

File listing archived passes. The size of this file will depend on how long the site has been capturing and archiving passes and can become extremely large.
You can list Cataloged passes in TeraCapCon or use listcat to look at the contents of this file.

pgsprocs/

Directory containing product definitions that users create from the TeraPGS GUI. These definitions are recipes read by the TeraPGS scripts to create TeraPGS products.

postprocs/

Directory containing processing scripts available for selection from TeraCapCon (and XCapCon). Includes pgs_ingest, the script that creates whole_pass datasets for TeraPGS.

satel/

($SATDATA) Directory containing files that describe satellite, telemetry, and sensor characteristics and relationships. [See $SATDATA ($TSCANROOT/pass/satel) for contents of this directory.]

schedlist

List of currently scheduled satellite passes. This list is updated periodically (usually once a day) by the autoscheduler (autosched2), and passes can be added individually by the user from TeraCapCon (or XCapCon). Once a scheduled pass has been captured, it is removed from the list.
    You can list Scheduled passes in TeraCapCon or use listsched or llsched to look at the contents of this file.

schedlog

ASCII file that logs events involving the scheduler daemon (tsched), including capture processes and autoarchive processes. The contents of this file can be viewed via the Log Viewer.

sitelist

ASCII file listing the remote receiver sites for which satellite coverage can be viewed. Sites can be defined from within TeraCapCon (or XCapCon).
    This file doesn't exist until a user creates an alternate site from within TeraCapCon.

system.config

ASCII file that defines system configuration. Contains the information that TeraScan needs to reference for system hardware and telemetry chains.
    A telemetry chain identifies a telemetry and the RF components of the system used to receive the telemetry. A system can have more than one telemetry chain.
    This file is created during TeraScan software installation. It can be modified via the System Configuration Editor.

tscan.login

Basic TeraScan setup file (ASCII), sourced from each TeraScan user's .login file.

tscan.rc.local

Shell script run at system bootup, called by tsched.init. Loads the DSP driver by invoking $PASSDIR/drivers/s56dsp/driver/driver_load. Starts the pass-scheduling daemon (tsched), the time- and location-monitoring daemons (sunclock and whereami), and the UPS-monitoring daemon (ups_monitor).

tsched.init

Script called by the operating system during bootup. tsched.init invokes the TeraScan initialization file tscan.rc.local.

ups_lock_XXX

Lock file used to guarantee the UPS exclusive access to the serial port. XXX= device base name, e.g., dev_term_b.

$SATDATA ($TSCANROOT/pass/satel)

The following is a brief description of the subdirectories and files of the $SATDATA directory. Files are binary unless otherwise noted.

avcal.coef

ASCII file of calibration coefficients for AVHRR channels 1 and 2.

datums.res

TeraScan map datum definitions.

satellite/

Directories containing satellite-specific reference data. There is a corresponding directory for each satellite. (See $SATDATA/satellite for the contents of these directories.)

orbits

Satellite orbit numbers.

hrptsatid

ASCII list of HRPT and NESDIS IDs for NOAA satellites.

nitpix.coef

ASCII file containing nitpix coefficients for algorithms used to derive sea surface temperatures from the NOAA satellite data.

pdus_satid

Lookup table (ASCII) for converting from PDUS ID to satellite name and subpoint latitude and longitude for Meteosats and GOES satellites.

tipclock/tipclock.dat

ASCII file containing tip clock adjustments for NOAA satellites, used by the fixclock function to correct the time of the input dataset.

$SATDATA/satellite/

The following is a brief description of the files of the $SATDATA/satellite directories. There is a separate directory for each satellite. These include: f-8, f-9, f-10, f-11, f-12, f-13, f-14, f-15, fy-1b, fy1-c, gms-4, gms-5, goes-7, goes-8, goes-9, goes-10, meteo-3, meteo-4, meteo-5, meteo-6, meteo-7, nimbus-g, noaa-6, noaa-7, noaa-8, noaa-9, noaa-10, noaa-11, noaa-12, noaa-14, noaa-15, orbview-2, sampex-1, and tiros-n.

Files are binary unless otherwise noted.

Define

An ASCII file describing the satellite, in terms of its ID number and telemetries, and defining the state of the satellite (active, inactive, ignore).
    Both active and inactive satellites are available as options on satellite pull-down menus of the TeraCapCon and XCapCon GUIs. A satellite with an ignore state does not appear as an option.
    You can customize the satellite lists of the TeraCapCon GUI by editing the satellite state in the satellite's Define file.

apt_avhrr

For NOAA satellites. APT sensor file with geometry and calibration information.

avhrr

For NOAA and TIROS-n satellites. AVHRR sensor file with geometry and calibration information.

carder_params2.dat

For OrbView-2 satellite. SeaWiFS color.

common.tdf

For GOES satellites. GOES Sounder.

czcs

For Nimbus-g satellite.

flemcofx.tdf

For GOES satellites. Sounder.

goesrtcx.tdf

For GOES satellites. Sounder.

gvissr

For GOES satellites. Sounder geometry and calibration.

hirs

For NOAA satellites. HIRS sensor geometry and calibration.

midmatrix.tdf

For DMSP satellites. Used by miedr to compute geophysical parameters for SSMI.

msu

For NOAA satellites. MSU sensor geometry and calibration.

ols

For DMSP satellites. OLS sensor geometry and calibration.

mvissr_ir

For Meteosats. Calibration file (ASCII).

mvissr_wv

For Meteosats. Calibration file (ASCII).

orbdata

File containing the compiled orbital elements for a given satellite (e.g., noaa-14). Used by the scheduler daemon for predicting the paths of polar-orbiting satellites so the antenna can track the satellite.

orbinput

ASCII file of readable one-line orbital elements for a given satellite (e.g., noaa-14). This file is compiled into the binary orbital elements dataset (orbdata) by the fixoes function.

seawifs

For OrbView-2. Sensor geometry and calibration.

skinreg.tdf

For GOES satellites. Sounder.

ssmi

DMSP satellites.

ssmt1

DMSP satellites.

ssu

NOAA satellites.

svissr

GMS and Meteosat satellites.

t1dmatrix.tdf

For DMSP satellites. Used by t1edr to compute profile for SSM/T1.

t2dmatrix.tdf

For DMSP satellites. Used by t1edr to compute profile for SSM/T2.

test5

Test sensor for geostationary satellites.

twoinput

ASCII file of two-line orbital elements.

wefax_schedule

GMS, GOES, and Meteosat satellites.

$REFDATA ($TSCANROOT/refdata)

The following is a brief description of the subdirectories and files of the $REFDATA directory. Files are binary unless otherwise noted.

app-defaults/

Directory containing an X Windows defaults file for each TeraScan GUI.

bathy/etop05

Bathymetry/topography database. Grid spacing is 5 min.

bathy/landmask.wdb2

Database referenced for land-masking operations.

climate/

TDF files. Climatology files used by several TeraScan functions for making initial guesses.

coast/dcw*

Land/political boundary data files, derived from the Digital Chart of the World database. Resolution is 1 km, nominally.

coast/wdb2*

Land/political boundary data files, derived from World Database II. Resolution is 1 km, nominally.

config/

Directory containing configuration files for RF hardware.

config/FSYNC_PARAMS

ASCII file providing TeraScan-referenced configuration information for the frame synchronizer.

config/antenna.config

ASCII file containing static configuration data for all polar-tracking antennas supported by the TeraScan system. This file is used by the antenna function.
    It contains the initial values to be used when the dynamic calibrations are first defined in the $PASSDIR/antenna/antenna.calib file.

config/bitsync.config

ASCII file providing TeraScan-referenced configuration information for the bitsync.

config/defaults/

Directory containing a default system.config file for each possible permutation of the TeraScan acquisition system. These are ASCII files.

config/launchpad.config

ASCII file defining the configuration of the TeraScan Launchpad.

config/receiver.config

ASCII file providing TeraScan-referenced configuration information for the receiver.

dcs/dcs_data

ASCII file listing DCS platforms and locations.

enhancements/

Directory containing the Public enhancements for TDF image display in TeraVision and XVu. Public enhancements are available to all TeraScan users.

favorites/General/

Directory containing links to the .view files for Public shelves of TeraVision.

favorites/SkewT/

Directory containing links to the .view files for Public Skew-T shelves of TeraVision.

fonts

Fonts used in TeraScan applications.

geomag/magnetic_model

ASCII file providing parameters of the TeraScan version of the World Magnetic Model (WMM).

grib/

Directory containing reference files for GRIB-related functions.

grib/center_data

ASCII table used by expgrib, the function which exports TeraScan data in GRIB (gridded binary) format. The table specifies processing center information common to all GRIB products exported from a given TeraScan system. It defines three fields: center_id, sub_center_id, and processing_id.

grib/export_rules

ASCII table used by expgrib. The table relates TeraScan dataset variables to GRIB product descriptions.

grib/fnmoc_forecasts

ASCII file of GRIB forecasts read by fnmocgrib to know which forecasts to process and which directory to deliver products to. fnmocgrib is a daemon that regularly processes GRIB data that appears in an $INPDIR directory.

grib/fnmoc_products

ASCII file of GRIB product definitions with variable names and units read by fnmocgrib to know which products to make.

grib/grib_grid.txt

ASCII table of GRIB grid values.

grib/grib_levels.txt

ASCII table of GRIB levels.

grib/grib_vars.txt

ASCII file of GRIB variable definitions.

grib/grids

ASCII table of GRIB grid descriptions.

grib/satellite_data

ASCII file containing satellite/variable-specific octet settings for GRIB PDS section. This file overrides the export_rules file.

icons/

Logos used in TeraScan applications.

marta/

Marta PCX conversion configuration files.

palettes/

Directory defining Public palettes used in TeraVision and XVu. Public palettes are available to all TeraScan users.

settings/

Directory containing ASCII files that define default settings for TeraScan GUIs (mostly TeraVision).

settings/datarep.inc

ASCII file defining the default data representations for TDF images and overlays displayed in TeraVision. This file is referenced from the tvis.res file.

settings/netrep.inc

ASCII file defining network-wide customizations of data representations for TeraVision. This file has the same format as the datarep.inc file. The settings of the netrep.inc file override the defaults of the datarep.inc file.

settings/stv.res

ASCII file defining default telemetry options available to the TeraScan Satellite Weather TV GUI.
    Each user also has a copy of the stv.res file in their $HOME/.terascan directory. The user-specific stv.res file defines user's telemetry options and is updated each time the user exits Satellite Weather TV. If the stv.res file is removed from a user's home directory, the master stv.res file will replace it.

settings/tvis.res

ASCII file defining default settings for the TeraVision GUI.
    Each user also has a copy of the tvis.res file in their $HOME/.terascan directory. The user-specific tvis.res file defines user's TeraVision display settings and is updated each time the user exits TeraVision. If the tvis.res file is removed from a user's home directory, the master tvis.res file will replace it.

settings/tvis_sys.res

ASCII file defining the Public programs accessible from the Programs panel of TeraVision and the external export converters available from the Export panel of TeraVision.

terapgs/pgsgens

ASCII file defining options available for the Image Maker field of the TeraPGS GUI.

terapgs/overlays

ASCII file defining data overlays (TOVS and GRIB) available for selection from the TeraPGS GUI.

terapgs/pgsvars

Variable options (and their dimensions) available for selection from the TeraPGS GUI.

tovs/

Directory containing Wisconsin TOVS package data.

units/

Directory containing units conversion databases.

units/unitsdb

Database for converting from one set of units to another (ASCII file).

units/equivunits

ASCII file containing common equivalent units for GUIs.

$HOME/.terascan

In each user's home directory, there is a hidden directory (.terascan) that contains user-specific directories and files.

favorites/General/

Directory containing links to the .view files for the user's Private TeraVision shelves. Private shelves are available only to the user account from which they were created.

favorites/SkewT/

Directory containing links to the .view files for the user's Private SkewT shelves in TeraVision. Private shelves are available only to the user account from which they were created.

enhancements/

Directory containing enhancements for TeraVision and XVu created from the current user account and saved as Private enhancements. Private enhancements are available only to the user account from which they were created.

overlays/

Directory containing overlays for TeraVision and XVu created from the current user account and saved as Private overlays. Private overlays are available only to the user account from which they were created.

palettes/

Directory containing palettes for TeraVision and XVu created from the current user account and saved as Private palettes. Private palettes are available only to the user account from which they were created.

stv.res

ASCII file defining telemetry options available to the TeraScan Satellite Weather TV GUI for the current user account. The file is updated each time the user exits the TeraScan Weather Satellite TV GUI.
    If the stv.res file is removed from a user's home directory, the master stv.res file ($REFDATA/settings/stv.res) will replace it.

surveys/

Directory containing survey objects created from the Survey panel of TeraVision and saved as Private surveys. Private surveys are available only to the user account from which they were created.

tvis.res

ASCII file defining display settings for the TeraVision GUI for the current user account. Also defines the programs accessible to the TeraVision Programs panel for the current account and the math formulas created from and accessible to the current user account. The file is updated each time the user exits TeraVision.
    If the tvis.res file is removed from a user's home directory, the master tvis.res file ($REFDATA/settings/tvis.res) will replace it.

TeraScan Environment Variables

The following environment variables are needed by TeraScan users. Each TeraScan user's .login file should source the TeraScan setup file $PASSDIR/tscan.login, where these environment variables are set.

TSCANROOT

Full path of directory containing the TeraScan directories.

PASSDIR

Initially $TSCANROOT/pass. If this directory gets too big, it might have to be moved to another location or linked to another directory.

SATDATA

Typically $PASSDIR/satel.

REFDATA

Typically $TSCANROOT/refdata.

PATH

Should include $TSCANROOT/bin, $PASSDIR/postprocs, and locations for Acrobat and Netscape.

DATADIR

Typically /usr2/Data. Defines the directory where pgs_ingested datasets are held temporarily while awaiting action by the TeraPGS scripts to generate products from them. Contains the wefax and whole_pass directories. The whole_pass directory is further subdivided into telemetry-specific directories.

PGSSPOOL

Defines the directory where TeraPGS products are held (spooled) while awaiting distribution.

PGSWORKDIR

Defines the directory where TeraPGS does all its product construction according to the product definitions stored in $PASSDIR/pgsprocs

TAPE

Default tape device for archiving pass data.

LD_LIBRARY_PATH

Defines shared library paths to include Motif and TDMS libraries; for SunOS: /usr/dt/lib:/usr/openwin/lib:$TSCANROOT/lib

ZAF_PATH

Points to the location of the .znc files for GUIs.

The following environment variables are used by TeraScan, but are not essential.

MORE

Report output scroller; default is more.

REPORTLP

Standard report print program; default is lp.

REPORTFINE

Wide report print program; default is lp.

SESSIONLOG

Running log of user interaction; default is no logging.

UNCOMPRESSDIR

Scratch directory for automatically expanding compressed datasets upon open. There is no default, which means there is no automatic uncompression.

ANT_DEBUG

Debug level for antenna control and pass disk access. 1=the Default; 2= verbose; and 3= ridiculously verbose.

ORBDATEDIFF

Maximum acceptable age for orbital elements in days, i.e., do not use orbital elements older than ORBDATEDIFF days. Default is 30. Non-fatal. Warnings start to be issued when age limit is reached.

Summary of Differences Between 2.6 and 3.0

In 2.6

In 3.0

$TSCANROOT/man/

Man pages have been replaced by HTML help pages located in the $TSCANROOT/html/man directories. The /html directory also contains the HTML help files for each of the TeraScan GUIs.

$PASSDIR/antenna/BAST

The BAST file has been moved to $PASSDIR.

$PASSDIR/antenna/acctelems

Information of the acctelems file is now part of the $PASSDIR/config.

$PASSDIR/autosched

Contains autoschedule records made in either XCapCon or TeraCapCon.

$PASSDIR/schedjob(s)

schedjob files have been moved to the $PASSDIR/logfiles directory.

$PASSDIR/sitelist

Now pertains to both XCapCon and TeraCapCon. Contains alternate sites only, not local site.

$PASSRSVP

This directory no longer exists.

$PASSRSVP/tracks00

Antenna pointing commands are now found in
$PASSDIR/antenna/tracksX, where X=telemetry chain.

$REFDATA/satel/SATSETUP

Information of the SATSETUP file is now part of the $PASSDIR/system.config file.

$REFDATA/satel/satellite/sensor

Sensor files are located in $PASSDIR/satel/satellite/sensor.

$REFDATA/satel/satellite/orbinput

The orbinput file for a given satellite is now found in the $PASSDIR/satel/satellite directory. satellite= noaa-14, e.g.

$REFDATA/satel/satellite/orbdata

The orbdata file for a given satellite is now found in the $PASSDIR/satel/satellite directory. satellite= noaa-14, e.g.

$REFDATA/satel/hrptid

The satel/hrptid file has been moved to the $PASSDIR directory.

$REFDATA/satel/nitpix.coef

The satel/nitpix.coef file has been moved to the $PASSDIR directory.