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Contact Us
If you need help, have comments or wish to offer suggestions we'd like to hear from you. Please email
Technical Staff or email the Web Page Curator identified at the bottom of primary Atlas web pages.
Introduction
The Planetary Image Atlas is a single interface through which you can
search the vast amounts of data collected by numerous NASA planetary
missions and archived by the Planetary Data System. The primary
audience for this interface
is members of the Science Community with some previous exposure
to NASA Missions and the raw data produced. This interface
primarily provides
access to raw, unprocessed data collected on the various
missions. If you are interested in viewing high quality, fully
processed images, or you are not familiar with the details and
raw data of
particular missions please try the Planetary Photojournal
which does not assume you have prerequisite knowledge of NASA
missions and data.
Our goal is to provide an integrated approach that permits users to search across
all Mission instruments and eventually across different
missions with common targets to more easily perform
correlative scientific analysis. The Atlas also
combines planetary data with databases and ancillary data that
describe it.
This page is designed to introduce you to the general design and
capabilities of the Atlas. More detailed help on specific functions
is available throughout the system.
Contents
Searching For Data
Database REPORTS
Displaying Data
Miscellaneous Tools
Getting Started
Searching for Cassini Data
An excellent tutorial specific to the Cassini data,
presented at the Geological Society of America,
2005 Salt Lake City Annual Meeting (October 16–19, 2005), is available online.
How to Obtain Cassini Data via NASA Planetary Data System
describes the function of the PDS organization and will help you step
through various methods of finding and obtaining Cassini data including via
the Planetary Image Atlas.
Searching for Data
Through the use of visual interfaces, the Atlas provides a simple,
intuitive mechanism for locating data. For terrestrial bodies, this
usually consists of a map or panorama on which you can scribe with
the area you are interested in researching with your cursor. A more
complex, time-dependent MAP approach is being developed to search for data
from missions visiting the gas giants.
If a visual, map-based
interface is available for the MISSION you have selected
an additional option to  will display
to the right of the Search Page Tab Icons. Click
to use the MAP interface for that MISSION. Any
criteria you have already selected/entered on the Search Forms will be retained
and applied to your MAP search as well.
Alternative to the MAP interface is the default FORMS interface on which search
criteria, such as filters, resolution, or spacecraft event time can be
input/selected. FORMS input/selection may be used alone or in conjunction with
the map interfaces. Once you have input your selection criteria via the MAP
or the FORMS, click  to execute
your search. Or you may first wish to  the
SQL query the Atlas generated based on your input/select criteria to ensure you
are getting what you expect before executing a potentially lengthy query.
When you execute the Atlas
queries databases at the PDS institutions where the data are
archived and returns the COUNT of Results that match
the search. If the results count found is reasonable select
a Processing Option from the pull down menu displayed at the bottom of
the form or accept the default (Browse Results ...) and click
 . Choosing to Browse Results
will also provide options and links to additional processing, such as converting
from RAW to GIF or JPEG format, or requesting custom REPORTS from the database
to better describe the data you have found.
Database REPORTS
After this initial search for a specific set of data has been
performed, you may use the Atlas to further query data catalogs for
detailed information about your data products. Virtually every
parameter describing a piece of data that is stored in a database
somewhere within the PDS is accessible to you.
This information may be simply viewed using your web-browser, or may
also be formatted for downloading as a detailed listing or report.
Select REPORT fields from the menu at the bottom or the Search Results
Page (the result of selecting to Browse Results).
Displaying Data
The Atlas provides a basic browsing capability by converting the
archived, PDS formatted data into web-friendly formats like GIF for
quick display at low resolution. It then permits you to specify the
format of your choice for downloading the full-resolution file. This
includes the original archive format, as well as other common formats
like JPEG and TIFF, and formats used in the science community like
VICAR and FITS.
The Atlas also allows for the display of combined sets of data, to aid
in scientific analysis. For example, you may view combined image and
topographic datasets of Mars as VRML-rendered worlds. Or you may
select individual wavelength bands of multispectral data to combine
and display as single color images. As time goes on, more
sophisticated means for displaying data will become available to you.
Miscellaneous Tools
For specific missions and datasets additional tools have been
integrated into the Atlas. For the Mars Pathfinder mission, the Atlas
provides direct links that permit you to view or submit entries to the
Experimentor's Notebook. For several missions, you may generate
tailor-made maps centered on a location of your choice. These tools
will also change and mature as further web-based technologies become
available.
Getting Started
Throughout the system, the following bar will be visible at the top of
each page:
"NEW SEARCH" returns you to the
initial Atlas Search FORMS, complete with the values of your last
search. This enables you to modify, reset or augment criteria then
execute a new SEARCH.
"ABOUT" provides version history, bug, and implementation
status.
"HELP" will link you
to a help page with information about the specific section of the
Atlas that you are in.
"FEEDBACK" sends email to Atlas technical
staff to ask for help, make suggestions or provide comments.
"HOME" returns to the main page for the PDS Imaging Node.
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