The file structure has been updated to reflect the archive's size making it algorithmically manageable. This is the only **BREAKING** file structure change that I intend to ever do. I sincerely apologize for any dead links, I just couldn't link this many changes with rewrites.

I promise this change is worth it, a major frontend update is in the works. Consider it 2.0 of the archive (:

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#   --> DIRECTORY STRUCTURE <--

1) BAND
The band is defined as the root level directory, currently 4:

- VHF
- L-Band
- S-Band
- X-Band


2) SATELLITE SERIES

The next directory is the **SATELLITE SERIES** -> The colloquial name of the satellite series

i.e.

- Meteor-M
- NOAA POES
- NASA EOS
- FengYun-3


**If a satellite is launched as a one-off and is not related to any series (e.g. Coriolis, MATS, UVSQ-NG), there should be a `no-series` file present in the satellite directory.**


2.5) BROADCAST TYPE -(OPTIONAL)-

The next directory specifies the **NAME OF THE BROADCAST** known by its official name **IF** the given satellite series has more than one transmission in this given band.


i.e.
- APT
- DSB

or
- LRIT
- HRIT


> internal: marked by `.broadcast-sep`


3) SATELLITE

The next directory is a specific satellite of the series (parent directory) known by its colloquial name (NOT official due to foreign symbols such as Roscosmos' `°` in `N°`)

i.e.

- Meteor M2-3
- NOAA-15
- Aura
- FengYun-3G


4) SATELLITE DATASETS

All directories at this point should be **SATELLITE DATASETS** -> Recordings, or processed imagery. In most cases it's a copy of the SatDump live output folder.

***IF A DATASET IS INVALID, TBD, OR OTHERWISE UNUSABLE - IT IS PREFIXED WITH A `-`***

Please note that, for some passes, XX-XX might be present in place of the time. This is for cases where the exact pass time is not known.

Another possible variant is XX-YY where YY is the sequential pass of the given day. This is for cases where the exact pass time is not known, and there is more than one pass in the day.

i.e.

- 2025-01-23_12-53_noaa-hrpt_person123

This is an NOAA HRPT dataset received on January 23rd 2025 at 12:53 UTC by person123

- 1999-01-23_XX-03_noaa-apt_person123

This is the third NOAA APT dataset received on January 23rd 1999 at an unknown time by person123



Structure for SatDump live outputs:
- `YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM_PIPELINE-NAME_RECEIVER-NAME`

General structure:
- `YYYY-MM-DD_HH-MM_DATASET-TYPE_RECEIVER-NAME`



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#   --> FILENAME STRUCTURE <--

This will describe possible attributes found in the satellite datasets



1) DATA TYPES

Everything related to the pass is found in the root of the dataset directory. This includes baseband recordings, symbols, or other applicable media.

i.e.
- 2025-01-23_12-53_noaa-hrpt_person123/baseband.cs8
- 2025-01-23_12-53_noaa-hrpt_person123/frames.raw16
- 2025-01-23_12-53_noaa-hrpt_person123/dataset.json

Large files are compressed using **Zstandard**, which uses the `.zst` extension. It was selected for its excellent speed and compression balance. Most archive managers should natively be able to extract these including 7zip, WinRAR, as well as Windows 11 natively.


2) RECEIVER INFORMATION

This describes the person who received and/or provided the pass. 

The formal structure is `rx-by-<RECEIVER>` present in the root of the dataset directory where RECEIVER is the name that should be used for crediting purposes.

This name is also present in the directory name after the last `_`

i.e.

- 2000-01-01_01-01_dataset_person123
---------------------------^^^^^^^^^



3) GROUPS

Every satellite dataset can be in a group. This is used when passes are related by share some kind of attribute. The group is defined in a text file called `group-info` in the root directory of the dataset.

Example groups:
- 2000/12/03 12:34 AVHRR malfunction
- Chernobyl imagery
- Long RX



4) NOTES

Every satellite dataset can have a note that apply to the given dataset, this is contained in a text file called `notes` in the root directory of the dataset

These contain special information about that pass in question, equipment used to receive it, or other miscellaneous information relevant to people who use this dataset

i.e.
- Received from the moon
- Shows Chernobyl after the explosion
- Hi mom


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Last change: 25/06/2025
~Meti