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The ABC of XTE

Data Files

Postscript version of this chapter

Introduction

Although you don't need to understand fully the detailed contents of RXTE data files in order to reduce RXTE data, some knowledge of file structure and contents will certainly make your RXTE life easier. Fortunately, despite the plethora of modes and configurations for PCA and HEXTE, there are only two basic formats for science data: science array and science event. These two basic formats are described in this chapter and follow a brief description of RXTE FITS files in general. Also described here are the RXTE filter files which enable "good" data to be selected on the basis of various housekeeping data.

Using just two basic formats requires that the hundreds of different configurations be described for software in a comprehensive and unified way. This task is performed by DDL - the Data Description Language in which certain configuration-identifying keywords are written. Knowing DDL is not strictly necessary, but is included here in a footnote for completeness. PCA modes and configurations are described individually in the PCA Issues chapter; HEXTE modes and configurations in the HEXTE Issues chapter.

FITS Files

Basic Structure

All RXTE data files are in FITS format and have the following parts:

  1. Primary Header contains information about the mission, the instrument, the observation and the initial processing. As with all FITS headers, this information is in the form of keywords with assigned values.

  2. Primary Image Array is blank.

  3. First Extension Header contains keywords which provide a complete and detailed description of the contents of the first extension. For convenience, it also contains some of the same information as the primary header.

  4. First Extension contains the scientific data. In the case of of science array files, the first extension is called XTE_SA. In the case of science event files, it is called XTE_SE.

  5. Second Extension Header contains keywords which provide a complete and detailed description of the contents of the second extension. For convenience, it also contains some of the same information as the primary header.

  6. Second Extension lists the standard good time intervals, i.e. the start and stop times of all the potentially useable data in the file. It is called GTI.

  7. Third Extension Header contains keywords which provide a complete and detailed description of the contents of the third extension. For convenience, it also contains some of the same information as the primary header.

  8. Third Extension lists the good time intervals, i.e. the start and stop times of all the data in the file, regardless of whether the data are actually useable. Like the second extension, it is called GTI.

A general guide to FITS format can be obtained via anonymous FTP at the FITS home page.

Useful Ftools for Examining FITS Files

The following ftools display summaries or the full contents of FITS files. We recommend you run them on one or two sample FITS files to get an idea of the structure and contents of your data files.

  1. fstruct provides an overview of the structure of a FITS file, i.e. the number, names and sizes of the extensions it contains.

  2. flcol provides an overview of the structure of a specified extension, i.e. the number, names and sizes of the columns it contains.

  3. fdump dumps to the screen the entire contents of a FITS file, starting with all the headers.

  4. fkeyprint prints to the screen the value of a specified header keyword.

  5. fv = "FITS Viewer" is a GUI-based tool that combines the functionality of the above four tools.

As with all ftools, typing fhelp followed by the name of the ftool will yield on-line help. You can also visit the ftools page.

Important Timing Keywords in the Primary Header

The keyword values in the primary header provide information about the start and stop times of the observation, the time units, the target, the Principal Investigator etc. You can view a primary header (and the rest of the FITS file) by using the ftool fdump. Most of these keywords, such as OBSERVER, have obvious meanings. However, the keywords associated with time require further explanation.

Time in RXTE data files is kept in TT (Terrestrial Time), the IAU standard and successor to Ephemeris Time (ET). TT and its relationship to other time systems is described in the Time Tutorial chapter. In general, the times stamped on data in RXTE files have the following properties:

  • Time stamps are in Space Craft Clock Seconds (SCCS), the true elapsed seconds since the "start" of the mission: January 1, 1994, at 0:0:0 UTC, which corresponds to MJD=49353.0 (UTC).

  • Time stamps plus the value of the TIMEZERO keyword provide time in TAI (International Atomic Time) as seconds since January 1, 1994, at 0:0:28 (TAI).

  • Time stamps plus TIMEZERO plus MJDREFI plus MJDREFF provide the absolute time in TT. Here, the sum of the two MJDREFI values gives the MJD of the start of the mission including the conversion from UTC to TT.

  • All times are in seconds, except MJDREFI and MJDREFF which are in days.

Science Array Files

Basic Structure

The science array format is used for data binned at regular intervals by the spacecraft electronics. Examples are the PCA Standard 2 configuration, which contains 129-channel spectra accumulated every 16 seconds, and HEXTE multi-scalar Bin mode, which contains light curves in 1-8 spectral bands. The data occupy the XTE_SA extension in the form of regularly accumulated arrays or histograms.

The XTE_SA Extension

The XTE_SA extension contains the science data arranged in columns (for different kinds of data) and rows (for each accumulation). The individual column-row cells may contain single values or arrays, depending on the kind of data. For example, the Time column contains one value per row, whereas the XeCnt column in certain PCA files contains, per row, a histogram of count rates in different energy bands. For modes with data histogrammed according to time, this means that the histogram step size - not the accumulation time - represents the actual time resolution of the data.

Important point: The times associated with binned data in science array files always refer to the beginning of the bin. This convention makes it much easier for software to keep track of time within the histograms. Likewise, in the light curves produced by the current extractors, the time also refers to the beginning of the bin, as reflected in the TIMEPIXR keyword value of 0.0. (Older versions of the extractors may have used TIMEPIXR=0.5.)

Since the Science Array format is a broad scheme, rather than a detailed prescription, the actual data format for a given configuration is described in the file itself - in the form of keywords in the extension header which you can view, like the rest of the FITS file, by using the ftool fdump. The most important of these are as follows:

  • DATAMODE: In the case of RXTE, this keyword gives the configuration, e.g. B_250us_2A_0_17_Q,.

  • TDDES: The value is a DDL string giving the name of the Observatory (XTE) and Instrument (ASM, HEXTE or PCA), e.g. O[XTE] & I[PCA].

  • TTYPEn: This keyword gives the name of the nth column. You can also find out the column names using the ftool flcol. Note that not all science array files have the same column names (apart from Time, that is): the names depend on instrument and mode.

  • TDDESn: In general, this keyword describes the data in the nth column. For the first, Time column, the value is simply Time. However, for second and higher columns it contains a DDL string. For example, TDDES2 in a PCA Standard 1 data file has the value: 
    
D[0] & E[X1L^X1R^X2L^X2R^X3L^X3R] & C[0~255] & T[0.0;0.125;1024]
    which means that the data come from Detector 0 (i.e. PCU0), from any one of the six detector Elements (xenon anodes), in one band spanning Channels 0-255, and packaged in a Time histogram with zero offset, and 1024 0.125-second steps.

  • DELTAT: This keyword gives the accumulation time of the histograms, i.e. the time between each row in the file. In the above example, it is 128 seconds (1024 times 0.125 s). In general, the accumulation time of the histograms is not a key piece of information for most users, as it only dictates the arrangement of the data in the file, rather than their scientific properties. The RXTE ftool saextrct transparently extracts data without your having to know how many steps each histogram contains or how often the histograms are accumulated. However, if you intend to write your own data reduction software, the accumulation time is crucial.

Note: The XTE_SA extension in PCA science array files also contains additional columns devoted to various EDS flags, as well as a collection of keywords called the coda which summarize EDS activity. The flags and coda are usually not important, but are described in a footnote for completeness.

The Two GTI Extensions

RXTE science array files have two additional extensions containing good time intervals (GTI). Both are called GTI.

The first GTI extension, the second extension in the file, contains the ANDed GTI corresponding to the times when:

  1. Telemetred data are present

  2. The satellite is pointing at the nominal source position, as derived from the spacecraft attitude

  3. The nominal source position is not occulted by the Earth, as predicted by mission operations

  4. The satellite is outside the South Atlantic Anomaly, as predicted by mission operations

The second GTI extension, the third extension in the file, contains the GTI corresponding to when telemetred data are present, i.e. just the first of the four criteria in the first GTI extension.

Science Event Files

Basic Structure

The science event format is used for unbinned data, i.e. for individual events. An example is the PCA Good Xenon configuration which contains time-stamped events with 256-channel resolution, PCU ID and anode ID. The science data occupy the XTE_SE extension in the form of event words - binary-encoded descriptions of the individual events. This format is more compact than the column-based format used for ROSAT and ASCA event-lists, and is fundamentally different.

The XTE_SE Extension

The XTE_SE extension contains the science data arranged in rows (one per event) and in two columns: the first, Time, for the time; the second, Event, for the event word. Event words comprise strings of ones and zeros, the combinations of which define the properties of each event with respect to a template of all possible properties within the configuration. This template is broken up into sections which, depending on the particular configuration, refer to things like PCU ID, PHA channel band, etc. Thus, an individual event word, with its particular combination of ones and zeros, picks out, say, one PCU ID, one PHA channel band etc.

Since the Science Event format is a broad scheme, rather than a detailed prescription, the actual data format for a given configuration is described in the file itself - in the form of keywords in the extension header which you can view by using the ftool fdump (note, however, that fdump will not display event words). The most important of these are as follows:

  • DATAMODE: In the case of RXTE, this keyword gives the configuration, e.g. E_1us_1M_0_1s.

  • TDDES: The value is a DDL string giving the name of the Observatory (XTE) and Instrument (ASM, HEXTE or PCA), e.g. O[XTE] & I[PCA].

  • TDDES2: This keyword in PCA Event files contains a DDL string which describes where the data in the second, Event column came from, i.e. from which detector, anode, channels, etc. For example, for files containing data in the E_1us_1M_0_1s PCA configuration, the value of TDDES2 is: 
    
D[0~4] & E[X1L^X1R^X2L^X2R^X3L^X3R] & C[0~249]
    which means that the data come from Detector 0-4 (i.e. PCU0-4), from any one of the six detector Elements (xenon anodes), from Channels 0-249 (but not necessarily in one band).

  • TDDES4: This keyword in HEXTE Event files contains a DDL string which describes where the data in the fourth, Event column came from, i.e. from which detector, pulse height channels, PHA channels, etc. For example, for files containing data in the E_8us_256_DX1F HEXTE configuration, the value of TDDES4 is: 
    
D[0~3] & E[0~131071] & C[0~255] & T[0~16]
    which means that the data come from Detectors 0-3 , with 17 bits of additional event information (see section on HEXTE Event List configurations and from Channels 0-255.

  • TEVTB2: This keyword in PCA Event files contains a DDL string which defines the event word template. For example, TEVTB2 in a PCA E_1us_1M_0_1s data file has the value: 
    
(M[1]{1},D[0:4]{3},T[0.0:0.00390625;9.5367431640625e-07]{12})^(M[12&
7]{8},S[One5]{5},S[FirstFlag]{1},S[SpillFlag]{1},S[Zero1]{1})^(M[1]&'
{8},S[LostEvents0]{8})^(M[2]{8},S[LostEvents1]{8})^(M[4]{8},S[Zero]&'
{7},S[Spillage]{1})^(M[8]{8},S[Zero]{5},S[ModeSpecific]{3})
    This looks intimidatingly verbose. However, the keyword actually contains six alternative event words, each denoted by an M-token (emboldened here for clarity) which tells the RXTE software which of the six applies to the row. It is the first event word which describes the science data: the last five event words are for various EDS flags.

    Like science array files, event files also have a coda of keywords summarizing EDS activity.

    For a detailed explanation of this particular event word, please refer to the section in the PCA Issues chapter on Generic Event Mode configurations. For more about DDL, see the DDL footnote to this chapter.

  • TEVTB4: This keyword in HEXTE Event files contains a DDL string which defines the event word template. For example, TEVTB4 in a HEXTE E_8us_256_DX1F data file has the value: 
    
E[0:63] {6}, E[CAL] {1}, T[0:15;1] {4}, D[0:3] {2}, E[LE1,LE0] {2}, 
T[0:1;7.62939453125e-6] {17}, C[0:255] {8}
    and is described in more detail in the section HEXTE Event List configurations.

    Unlike PCA Event modes, there are no M-tokens and no "alternative" event words in HEXTE Event files. This is because the non-events that would require alternative event words are not included in telemetry. This means, for example, that a HEXTE event file will not contain an instance of a non-zero calibration flag, i.e. E[CAL] will not equal 1. It also means that there is no need to select events based on the calibration flag.

The Two GTI Extensions

RXTE science array files have two additional extensions containing good time intervals (GTI). Both are called GTI.

The first GTI extension, the second extension in the file, contains the ANDed GTI corresponding to the times when:

  1. Telemetred data are present

  2. The satellite is pointing at the nominal source position, as derived from the spacecraft attitude

  3. The nominal source position is not occulted by the Earth, as predicted by mission operations

  4. The satellite is outside the South Atlantic Anomaly, as predicted by mission operations

The second GTI extension, the third extension in the file, contains the GTI corresponding to when telemetred data are present, i.e. just the first of the four criteria in the first GTI extension.

Filter Files

RXTE filter files contain the values of various housekeeping data and derived quantities with which good data can be selected. For instructions on how to use filter files, please see the recipe on Reduction and Analysis of PCA Spectra. For instructions on how to create a new filter file, see the recipe Creating XTE Filter Files. In this section we describe the files themselves.

Properties

Conventionally, there is one filter file for each Observation ID, i.e. for each temporally contiguous collection of data from a single pointing. The filter file for a given ObsId can be found in the Standard Products subsystem - unless, that is, your data tape was made in the first few months of AO-1, in which case you have to make your own. In fact, you'll also have to make a filter file if the exisiting one does not contain the BKGD_THETA, BKGD_PHI, TIME_SINCE_SAA, and ELECTRONn columns needed by the background generator pcabackest.

Note that whilst a filter file spans an entire ObsId, the corresponding PCA and HEXTE data trains can contain gaps - for instance, when the instruments were turned off to protect them from the SAA.

The files themselves contain regularly spaced rows in time (the default bin size is 16 seconds) made up of fifty or so columns, each containing a housekeeping or derived parameter. Examples are the high voltage across the three Xenon layers in PCU0 (with the column name hvXE_PCU0) and the Right Ascension of the instantaneous pointing direction (POINT_RA). You can list all the column names by using the ftool flcol on the filter file.

How to Make a Filter File

We provide here brief instructions for creating a filter file. For further details, see the recipe Creating XTE Filter Files.

The Perl script xtefilt will make a filter file, automatically consulting the appropriate housekeeping files. It requires, as input:

  1. The ObsID (e.g. 10367-02-02-00). Note that for realtime data, the ObsId is different. Please check the recipe Working with Realtime Data for details.

  2. The path to the directory containing your FITS Master Index (FMI) file , (e.g. /home1/day/xte/P10367 if that's where the file FMI is).

  3. A file listing the Application IDs used to generate the filter file. This list changes as experience with data screening grows, and as modifications are made to estimating the PCA background. The current version of the list can be found by typing fhelp xtefilt. Please cut and paste its contents into your own file.

Additional, optional inputs are possible, including changing the size of the time bins from 1 second (the default). Typing fhelp xtefilt will display complete instructions for using xtefilt. An example of its use: 

> xtefilt -o "10367-02-02-00" -p "/home1/day/xte/" -a "applist" -t 100
where applist contains the list of AppIds and the time bins are set to 100 seconds.

Please proceed to the PCA Issues chapter. Or return to the Table of Contents.
The ABC of XTE is written and maintained by the RXTE GOF. Please email xtehelp@athena.gsfc.nasa.gov if you have any questions or comments. This particular page was last modified on Wednesday, 24-Aug-2022 11:10:28 EDT.