PDS4 Product Labels, Step by Step

This page provides step-by-step information for filling out a PDS4 label. There are several distinct types of labels that you will encounter, with different structural details, though there is some overlap. In each case, the label is divided into several major section, listed below.

Observational Product Label Structure

In a typical observational product, there are four major sections, and occasionally there's a fifth:

1. Identification Area - contains identifiers that distinguish this product from all others, This area is required in all labels regardless of type.
   Filling Out the Identification_Area Class
2. Observation Area - contains information used to describe the observation and subsequent processing at a high level. This area is required in observational products.
   Filling Out the Observation_Area Classes
3. Reference List - contains cross-references to internal products (e.g., calibration observations or documents) and/or external publications. This area is always optional.
   Filling Out the Reference_List Classes
4. File Area - identifies the data file(s) and defines the data structures within observational products. Observational product labels must have at least one File Area.
   Filling Out the File_Area_Observational Classes
5. File Area Supplemental, the structure of which is identical to the File Area. This section is optional.
   Filling Out the File_Area_Observational_Supplemental Classes

Document Product Label Structure

Documents, which consist of at least a single file and may comprise an entire directory tree, replace the File_Area of the observational product label with a Document_Format_Set that describes the set of files constituting one complete version of a document. The major sections of a document label are:

1. Identification Area - as in the observational product label.
   Filling Out the Identification_Area Class
2. Document Area - This area contains what could be thought of as the "card catalog" information for the document being labels - that is, the description of the logical context of the document, like title and author.
   Filling Out the Document Class
3. Context Area - This is the more general form of the Observation_Area of the observational product label. Fields required for observational products are optional here. In fact, this class is optional in document products.
   Filling Out the Observation_Area Classes
4. Reference List - as in the observational product label. This section is also optional in document prodducts.
   Filling Out the Reference_List Classes
5. Document Format Set - This class structure identifies and describes all the files that constitue one copy of the document in one electronic format. Often this will be a single UTF-8 text file or a PDF/A file, but it may also describe a text file with a series of graphics or image files. There must be at least one of these in the document label, and all formats of the document should be described in the same label.
   Filling Out the Document_Format_Set Classes