NEON data files are named using a series of component abbreviations separated by periods. File naming conventions for NEON data files differ between NEON science teams. A file will have the same name whether it is accessed via the data portal or the API.
NEON observational systems (OS) data files: NEON.DOM.SITE.DPL.PRNUM.REV.DESC.YYYY-MM.PKGTYPE.GENTIME.csv
NEON instrumented systems (IS) data files: NEON.DOM.SITE.DPL.PRNUM.REV.HOR.VER.TMI.DESC.YYYY-MM.PKGTYPE.GENTIME.csv
NEON eddy covariance (EC) data files contain multiple data products, are formatted using HDF5, and delivered within a zip file:
- Zip file: NEON.DOM.SITE.DP4.00200.001.YYYY-MM.PGKTYPE.GENTIME.zip
- Monthly data files: NEON.DOM.SITE.DP4.00200.001.DESC.YYYY-MM.PKGTYPE.h5
- Daily data files: NEON.DOM.SITE.DP4.00200.001.DESC.YYYY-MM-DD.PKGTYPE.h5
NEON airborne observational platform (AOP) data file naming conventions depend on the data product and contain abbreviations unique to AOP:
| Data Products | File Name Structure |
|---|---|
| L1 Products | |
| Digital camera | FLHTSTRT_EHCCCCCC(IMAGEDATETIME)-NNNN_ort.tif |
| Discrete return lidar, unclassified | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_LNNN-R_FLIGHTSTRT_DESC.laz |
| Discrete return lidar, classified | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_EEEEEE_NNNNNNN_DESC.laz |
| Spectrometer | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_FLHTDATE_FFFFFF_DESC.h5 |
| Waveform lidar | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_LNNN-R_FLIGHTSTRT_DESC.wvz (or .plz) |
| L2 Products | |
| Spectrometer | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_FLHTDATE_FFFFFF_DESC.zip (or .tif) |
| L3 products | |
| Spectrometer / Lidar / Camera | NEON_DOM_SITE_DPL_EEEEEE_NNNNNNN_DESC.laz |
Component abbreviations used across all data products
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| NEON | A four-character alphanumeric code, denoting the organizational origin of the data product and identifying the product as operational; data collected as part of a special data collection exercise are designated by a separate, unique alphanumeric code created by the PI. |
| DOM | A three-character alphanumeric code, referring to the domain of data acquisition (D01 - D20). |
| SITE | A four-character alphanumeric code, referring to the site of data acquisition; all sites are designated by a standardized four-character alphabetic code. |
| DPL | A three-character alphanumeric code, referring to data product processing level. |
| PRNUM | A five-character numeric code, referring to the data product number (see the Data Product Catalog at http://data.neonscience.org/data-product-catalog). |
| REV | A three-digit designation, referring to the revision number of the data product. The REV value is incremented by 1 each time a major change is made in instrumentation, data collection protocol, or data processing such that data from the preceding revision is not directly comparable to the new. |
| HOR | A three-character alphanumeric code for Spatial Index #1. Refers to measurement locations within one horizontal plane. For example, if five surface measurements were taken, one at each of the five soil array plots, the number in the HOR field would range from 001-005. |
| VER | A three-character alphanumeric code for Spatial Index #2. Refers to measurement locations within one vertical plane. For example, if eight temperature measurements are collected, one at each tower vertical level, the number in the VER field would range from 010-080. |
| TMI | A three-character alphanumeric code for the Temporal Index. Refers to the temporal representation, averaging period, or coverage of the data product (e.g., minute, hour, month, year, sub-hourly, day, lunar month, single instance, seasonal, annual, multi-annual). 000 = native resolution, 001 = native resolution or 1 minute, 002 = 2 minute, 005 = 5 minute, 015 = 15 minute, 030 = 30 minute, 060 = 60 minutes or 1 hour, 101-103 = native resolution of replicate sensor 1, 2, and 3 respectively, 999 = Sensor conducts measurements at varied interval depending on air mass. |
| DESC | An abbreviated description of the data file or table. |
| YYYY-MM | Represents the year and month of the data in the file. |
| PKGTYPE | The type of data package downloaded. Options are 'basic', representing the basic download package, or 'expanded',representing the expanded download package (see more information below). |
| GENTIME | The date-time stamp when the file was generated, in UTC. The format of the date-time stamp is YYYYMMDDTHHmmSSZ. |
Component abbreviations used only in AOP data products
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| FLHTDATE | Date of flight, YYYYMMDD |
| FLIGHTSTRT | Start time of flight, YYYYMMDDHH |
| FLHTSTRT | Start time of flight, YYMMDDHH |
| IMAGEDATETIME | Date and time of image capture, YYYYMMDDHHmmSS |
| CCCCCC | Digital camera serial number |
| NNNN | Sequential number for indexing files |
| NNN | Planned flightline number |
| R | Repeat number |
| FFFFFF | Numeric code for an individual flightline |
| EEEEEE | UTM easting of lower left corner |
| NNNNNNN | UTM northing of lower left corner |
Time stamp abbreviations across all data products
| Abbreviation | Definition |
|---|---|
| YYYY | Year |
| YY | Year, last two digits only |
| MM | Month: 01-12 |
| DD | Day: 01-31 |
| T | Indicator that the time stamp is beginning |
| HH | Hours: 00-23 |
| mm | Minutes: 00-59 |
| SS | Seconds: 00-59 |
| Z | Universal Time Coordinated (Universal Coordinated Time), or UTC |
