Header Structure

All NOAAPORT products have an identifying two-line header. The product headers can tell you:

• What kind of product it is
• Who created the product (what country)
• When the product was created (time in UTC)
• What geographic area the product covers
• How long the product is valid
• Where the product is distributed (global, regional, etc.)

The product header protocols are described in the NWSTG and NESDIS to AWIPS Interface Control Document extracts. A list of current Remapped AWIPS Satellite Products and their associated headers are available.

The two line product header takes the generic form shown below:

T1T2A1A2ii (sp) CCCC (sp) YYGGgg [(sp)BBB] (cr) (cr) (lf)

NNNxxx (cr) (cr) (lf)

The first line is a WMO abbreviated header as defined in WMO Manual 386 , Manual on the Global Telecommunications System.

The second line is an AFOS/AWIPS identifier defined in Communications Identifier Policy for: Operational NWS Communication Networks and Systems, January 1995, NWS Office of Systems Operations/Systems Integration Division.