Dumping Landsat RBV data

Anybody know the particulars of this? I tend to think that
it's a sin to throw away data, but perhaps this is justified.
Also, what were the "inherent problems with the RBV data?"

Subject: DATA-PURGE-ALERTS USGS Landsat RBV Digital Data
Date: Fri, 24 Oct 2003 07:46:29 -0500
From: "John L Faundeen"


- NOTICE -

This Data Purge Alert confirms the USGS intention to dispose of
our Landsat Return Beam Vidicon (RBV) digital data. The USGS
received formal permission to dispose of this data yesterday from
our National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Over
150,000 images, residing on 2,025 tapes and occupying 15 pallets,
are affected. The images were collected from March of 1978
through January of 1983. The USGS sought this permission
because a) no system in the world can currently read these tapes
and b) if a system did exist and the data could be transcribed,
the inherent problems with the RBV data itself would remain.


John Faundeen, Archivist
The National Imagery Archive @ USGS EDC
U.S. Geological Survey
EROS Data Center
47914-252nd Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57198 USA
Tel: 605-594-6092
Fax: 707-222-0223
E-mail:
URL: http://edc.usgs.gov/archive/nslrsda/index.html

probably uncompensated sensor drift

"Allen Thomson" wrote in message
m...
Anybody know the particulars of this? I tend to think that
it's a sin to throw away data, but perhaps this is justified.
Also, what were the "inherent problems with the RBV data?"

Subject: DATA-PURGE-ALERTS USGS Landsat RBV Digital Data
Date: Fri, 24 Oct 2003 07:46:29 -0500
From: "John L Faundeen"


- NOTICE -

This Data Purge Alert confirms the USGS intention to dispose of
our Landsat Return Beam Vidicon (RBV) digital data. The USGS
received formal permission to dispose of this data yesterday from
our National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). Over
150,000 images, residing on 2,025 tapes and occupying 15 pallets,
are affected. The images were collected from March of 1978
through January of 1983. The USGS sought this permission
because a) no system in the world can currently read these tapes
and b) if a system did exist and the data could be transcribed,
the inherent problems with the RBV data itself would remain.


John Faundeen, Archivist
The National Imagery Archive @ USGS EDC
U.S. Geological Survey
EROS Data Center
47914-252nd Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57198 USA
Tel: 605-594-6092
Fax: 707-222-0223
E-mail:
URL: http://edc.usgs.gov/archive/nslrsda/index.html