PDS_VERSION_ID          = PDS3
RECORD_TYPE             = STREAM
OBJECT                  = TEXT
  PUBLICATION_DATE      = 2013-10-15
  NOTE                  = "N/A"
END_OBJECT              = TEXT

END

                              AAREADME.TXT
                             October 15, 2013

==============================================================================
INTRODUCTION
==============================================================================

This volume contains Experiment Data Record (EDR) instrument data acquired by 
the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite on the Mars Science 
Laboratory rover. SAM includes the Quadrupole Mass Spectrometer (QMS), the Gas
Chromatograph (GC), and the Tunable Laser Spectrometer (TLS).

The SAM EDR data are a "safed" PDS data set. That means it is not a formally
reviewed PDS archive, and the data are not considered Certified Data by PDS. 
However, the data are being preserved by PDS to prevent their being lost after
the end of the mission.  Together the SAM instrument team and PDS agreed that
it was better to safe the EDR data rather than archive it, because the data
were not likely to be of interest to most science users. Users would be more
interested in the lowest-level SAM RDR data set, MSL-M-SAM-2-RDR-L0-V1, which 
contains the same unprocessed science data as the EDR, but in a more
accessible format and with extraneous non-science components removed.

==============================================================================
VOLUME SET INFORMATION
==============================================================================

SAM EDR data are stored in a volume having the directory structure 
illustrated below.  

   root
    |
    |- AAREADME.TXT                Introduction to the archive (this file)
    |- ERRATA.TXT                  Release notes and errata for the archive
    |- VOLDESC.CAT                 Description of the contents of the archive 
    |
    |- CATALOG
    |     |
    |     |- CATINFO.TXT           Description of the CATALOG directory
    |     |- MSL_INSTHOST.CAT      Instrument host (rover) description 
    |     |- MSL_MISSION.CAT       Mission description
    |     |- MSL_REF.CAT           References mentioned in MSL*.CAT files
    |     |- PERSON.CAT            Relevant SAM personnel
    |     |- SAM_INST.CAT          Instrument description
    |     |- SAM_EDR_DS.CAT        Level 0 data set description
    |     |- SAM_REF.CAT           References mentioned in SAM*.CAT files
    |
    |- DATA
    |     |
    |     |- nnnnn                 Directory od data acquired on sol nnnnn
    |          |
    |          |- *.DAT            Binary tables of SAM EDR data
    |          |- *.LBL            PDS labels describing the data products
    |
    |- DOCUMENT
    |     |
    |     |- DOCINFO.TXT           Description of the DOCUMENT directory
    |     |- EDRDPSIS.PDF,.HTM     SAM EDR data product specification
    |     |- EDRDPSIS.LBL          PDS label for EDRDPSIS.*
    |
    |- INDEX
          |
          |- INDXINFO.TXT          Description of the INDEX directory
          |- INDEX.TAB, LBL        ASCII table of SAM EDR data products, and
                                   PDS label describing the table
    

==============================================================================
FILE FORMAT
==============================================================================

SAM EDR data files are stored as binary tables with file names ending in
DAT. 

Each table is accompanied by a detached PDS label with the same name but the 
extension LBL, which describes the format and content of the table.
PDS labels are ASCII text files that may be read in a text editor.

Documentation on data file contents is available in the SAM EDR 
Software Interface Specification (EDRDPSIS) in the DOCUMENT directory.

All text files in the archive, including PDS labels, are delimited with 
carriage-return (ASCII 13) line-feed (ASCII 10) pairs at the end of the line.

==============================================================================
COGNIZANT PERSONNEL
==============================================================================

SAM EDR data products are generated and assembled into archive volumes by 
the MSL Operations Product Generation Subsystem (OPGS), and delivered to 
the SAM Science Team and the Planetary Data System Geosciences Node. 
The Geosciences Node releases the data to the public. 

SAM Science Team Archive Representative: Heather Franz, NASA/Goddard Space
Flight Center, heather.b.franz@nasa.gov.

PDS Geosciences Node Representative: Susan Slavney, Washington University,
Susan.Slavney@wustl.edu.