Data Set Overview
  =================
    This data set contains all the unchannelized telemetry from the
    Microscopy,  Electrochemistry, and Conductivity Analyzer (MECA), a
    payload on the Phoenix 2007 Mars mission, with the exception of the
    optical microscope images, which can found on the Imaging node.
    Included here are data from the Wet Chemistry Laboratory (WCL), Thermal
    and Electrical Conductivity Probe (TECP), Atomic Force Microscope
    (AFM), and all the ancillary electronic data that describe the
    configuration of the instrument when the data was acquired.

    Collectively, the data set is useful for characterizing the icy soils on
    the northern plains of Mars, at and slightly below the surface.
    Specifically,  data from the WCL is useful in determining the major
    aqueously solvated  components of martian soil; data from the AFM
    complements the OM data in  characterizing dust-size particles that
    contribute to Aeolian processes; and  data from the TECP is useful in
    understanding the state and transport of water  in all phases both under
    and above the surface.

    More information is found in HECHTETAL2008, KOUNAVESETAL2008, and
    ZENTETAL2008.

  Processing
  ==========
    The Committee On Data Management and Computation (CODMAC) data
    level numbering system is used to describe the processing level
    of the EDR data product.  MECA Non-Imaging EDR data products are
    considered CODMAC Level 2 or Edited Data (equivalent to NASA level 0)
    products.  The EDR data files are generated from Level 1 or Raw
    Data, which are the telemetry packets within the project specific
    Standard Formatted Data Unit (SFDU) record.

    The philosophy of this Level 2 product archive is to preserve all the
    data  in the most pristine form, edited only to consolidate packets,
    eliminate gaps,  and remove redundant packet header information. Thus
    the data that appears here  is in the form of binary tables preceded by
    binary headers, nearly identical to  how they were presented in the
    original packetized data but without the length  restriction imposed on
    the packets. The intention is that this archive is the  primary
    repository of all primary data, but that most users will reference RDR
    products in more accessible formats.

    The MECA Non-Imaging EDR data products were generated by the MIPL
    (Multimission Image Processing Laboratory) at JPL. The MECA subsystem
    contains  no independent memory, and all MECA data is stored in Phoenix
    ROM or flash  memory until it can be transmitted to an orbital relay.
    Lander to orbiter  bandwidth is limited, and there is typically no
    retransmission of data.

  Data
  ====

    Each MECA Non-Imaging EDR consists of a single file containing binary
    data  preceded by an ASCII PDS label. The body of the file is a binary
    data set  consisting of one of sixteen format types as described in the
    Software Interface  Specification. Types 0-3 contain data pertinent to
    an AFM measurement; the  actual scan data is a table in type 2. Types
    4-6 are data returned by common  electronics functions, including power
    monitoring (type 5). Type 7 contains all  the TECP data. Types 8-15
    pertain to the WCL: Type 8 contains data from all the  potentiometric
    WCL sensors such as pH and ion-selective electrodes; type 9  contains
    conductivity data; types 10-14 contains various voltammetries and
    potentiometries, all in a common format; and type 15 contains pressure
    and  temperature data.

  Software
  ========
    Data reduction software for the MECA Non-Imaging EDRs is coded in the
    Matlab  programming environment (Mathworks, Inc.) Matlab is a privately
    maintained,  closed source language that does not conform to an industry
    standard, and  consequently it has been decided not to include the
    Matlab code as part of the  PDS archive. The Matlab scripts may be
    obtained free of charge by contacting  members of the MECA science team.

  Media/Format
  ============
    The data set will stored and distributed online.

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