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PCRaster is a unique raster based GIS package ideally suited for dynamic modelling. Information on the PCRaster native format (and a free version, including tools for conversion) can be obtained from http://www.pcraster.nl
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USGS BIL / BSQ / BIP
These files consist of an ASCII header file (with content information) and a binary data file. The ASCII description files support the following formats:
- Band sequential (BSQ) multiband images
- Band interleaved by line (BIL) multiband images
- Band interleaved by pixel (BIP) multiband images
In order to support time steps an addition has been made to the .hdr file. A USGS BIL, BIP and BSQ file always have a *.hdr header file that contains the settings for the dataset. So as to add support for time data in these files the following changes must be made:
- Add a line to the header file with the number of time blocks: for example nBlocks 3.
- The nBands property in the header file represents the number of available parameters.
Creating a dynamic bil file:
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For further information see:
http://www.esri.com/library/whitepapers/pdfs/eximgav.pdf
ESRI ASCII
ASCII grids are stored in a format compatible with ESRI (and many other) software. The ASCII raster file format is a simple format that can be used to transfer raster data between various applications. The header data includes the following keywords and values:
- ncols - number of columns in the data set.
- nrows - number of rows in the data set.
- xllcenter or xllcorner - x-coordinate of the centre or lower-left corner of the lower-left cell.
- yllcenter or yllcorner - y-coordinate of the centre or lower-left corner of the lower-left cell.
- cellsize - cell size for the data set.
- nodata_value - value in the file assigned to cells whose value is unknown. This keyword and value is optional. The nodata_value defaults to -9999.
The first row of data is at the top of the data set, moving from left to right. Cell values should be delimited by spaces. No carriage returns/linefeeds are necessary at the end of each row in the data set. The number of columns in the header is used to determine when a new row begins. The number of cell values must be equal to the number of rows times the number of columns.
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