Description of the Header in the Data Files

hExample header:

EP42 (50465; 13; 21) EDITED PRESSURE [PSIA] 0

First data record at (MO/DA/YR HR:MN:SE): 8/26/92 ( 9: 0: 0.)

Start relative to 1 Jan 1980, sd = 110913.0000000000

Series length = 1208701 Delta = 0.416667E-02 [hrs]

EP42 (50465; 13; 21) EDITED TEMPERATURE [C] 1.03

First data record at (MO/DA/YR HR:MN:SE): 8/26/92 ( 9: 0: 0.)

Start relative to 1 Jan 1980, sd = 110913.0000000000

Series length = 1208701 Delta = 0.416667E-02 [hrs]

There are always two sections in the header. The first line in the first section describes the Pressure data; the first line in the second section describes the Temperature data. The last three lines are always the same in both sections.

The name of the buoy is listed first, EP42. The 50465 is the "PAROS ID #" which is the pressure sensor; the 13 is the number given to the circuit board by the engineers who made it; and the 21 is the oscillator (clock) number.

The next part of the line indicates the measurement and units, Edited Pressure [PSIA], pressure in pounds per square inch absolute; or Edited Temperature [C], temperature in Celsius.

The last number, 0, in the first line of the Pressure section could contain a correction to be applied to the pressure in psia. In this case, the value is 0.0. You may see a value of 7000 here.

The last number, 1.03, in the Temperature section is a correction that has been applied to the temperature based on the Mini-Temperature Recorder (Mtr). The Mtr was designed by PMEL and placed in proximity to several BPR's, particularly those around vent sites.

Second Line: First data record at (MO/DA/YR HR:MN:SE): 8/26/92 ( 9: 0: 0.)

Then second line is self-explanatory. It displays the start date of the data in the format: (MO/DA/YR HR:MN:SE).

Third Line: Start relative to 1 Jan 1980, sd = 110913.0000000000

The third line indicates that the start date, sd, is computed as the number of Julian calendar hours since January 1, 1980. In this case, juliandate(August 26, 1992) - juliandate(January 1, 1980) = 110913.

Fourth Line: Series length = 1208701 Delta = 0.416667E-02 [hrs]

The fourth and last line of the header, indicates how many data points there are in the series, 1208701, and Delta indicates the time difference between them in hours. In this case, Delta = 0.416667E-02 [hrs] equals a time difference of 15 seconds.