File name:		readme.txt
Authors:		Ophelie Aussedat and Nadine Gobron
Affiliation:		Institute for Environment and Sustainability
			Joint Research Centre
			Via Enrico Fermi, 1
			I-21020 Ispra (VA), Italy
E-mails:		Ophelie.Aussedat@jrc.it
			Nadine.Gobron@jrc.it

Document title:	Documentation of the FAPAR Processor, a plug-in for MERIS/(A)ATSR Toolbox (BEAM)

Release date:	4 October 2004


Introduction

This file briefly describes the installation and use of the accompanying software package, which computes the Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR), on the basis of ENVISAT/MERIS Level-1 data, following the algorithm described in the papers cited in the references section below.

Requirements

The FAPAR processor is a plug-in module for the BEAM software developed by Brockmann Consult for ESA. 
This latter software must of course be installed prior to the FAPAR processor.

The BEAM software includes an application programming interface (API) and a set of executable tools to facilitate the use of MERIS, AATSR and further ASAR data products of the ESA ENVISAT satellite. It can be freely downloaded from:

http://scipc3.scicon.gkss.de/services/beam2/software/


Installation

The BEAM package is installed within a particular, user-selectable, directory. For the purpose of this documentation file, that directory will be denoted $BEAM_DIR$. After installation of the BEAM package, this directory should contain the following subdirectories:

	$BEAM_DIR$
		|- bin/
		|- lib/
		|- extensions/
		|- docs/
		|- licenses/
		|- requests/
		|- auxdata/
		|- api-doc.zip          
		|- src.zip              
		|- examples.zip      
		|- readme.txt           
		|- version.txt          
		|- changelog.txt

The FAPAR processor plug-in, named 'fapar_processor.jar', must simply be added to the $BEAM_DIR$/extensions/ subdirectory. The BEAM application (VISAT) will automatically integrate the FAPAR processor within its interface.


Operation

Once the BEAM software and the FAPAR processor have been installed, the package can be operated in two different modes: interactive and automatic.

To launch an interactive session, start the main BEAM software application (VISAT) and select the FAPAR processor using the following menu selections: Tools -> FAPAR Processor. A dialog window will appear:

- Select the input file containing the MERIS Level-1 data to be processed.
- Specify the output file where you want the results to be written.
- Select the output format from the pull-down menu, if different from the BEAM default.
- Optionally, save this configuration in a separate XML file, known to BEAM software as a (reusable) 'processing request'.
- Initiate the FAPAR processor itself by clicking on the 'start' button.

To process one or more data sets automatically, i.e., without requiring manual input, it is also possible to launch the application from the command line (or an executable script, for that matter). 

>From within the $BEAM_DIR$ directory, at the operating system prompt, type:

java -jar extensions/fapar_processor.jar [options] [processing_request]

where [processing_request] stands for the name of the corresponding file, which can either be saved from an interactive session or created manually with a plain text editor.

Possible options include:

-i, --interactive:	run processor in interactive mode
-d, --debug:		enable output of debug messages

The BEAM 'processing request', an XML file (in plain ASCII, with a '.xml' extension), must be supplied when the processor runs in non-interactive mode. In interactive mode, the request is an optional command line argument.


Warranties and copyright information

The FAPAR processor package described in this document is provided 'as is', with no warranty of merchantability or fitness to any particular purpose. Although every effort has been made to ensure accuracy of computations and conformity to the algorithms as published in the references below, the authors assume no responsibility whatsoever for any direct, indirect or consequential damage resulting from the use of this software. The FAPAR processor is distributed free of charge and cannot be sold or re-sold. It can be copied and distributed further, provided all documentation is attached and provided the original source of the software is explicitly and prominently described.

Questions, concerns and problems should be referred to the authors of the software package at the address indicated at the start of this file.

The copyright on this file and the associated software remains with the Joint Research Centre, an institution of the European Commission.


Last References:

Gobron, N., O. Aussedat, B. Pinty, M. Taberner and M.M. Verstraete (2004),'Medium Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MERIS) Level 2 Land Products Algorithm Theoretical Basis Document Revision 3.0,EUR Report No. 21387 EN.

Gobron, N. M. Taberner, B. Pinty, F. Melin, M.M. Verstraete and J.-L. Widlowski (2003) 'Evaluation of the MERIS Global Vegetation Index: Methodology and Initial Results', Proceedings of the MERIS and ATSR Calibration and Geophysical Validation (MAVT), Frascati, Italy, 20-23 October, 2003, European Space Agency SP 541.

Gobron, N. , F. Mélin, B. Pinty, M. Taberner and M. M. Verstraete (2003) 'MERIS Global Vegetation Index: Evaluation and Performance', Proceedings of the MERIS User Workshop, Frascati, Italy, 10-14 November, European Space Agency SP 549.