pyadps Documentation

Python package for ADCP data processing

pyadps provides tools for reading, quality controlling, and processing Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (ADCP) data — designed for Teledyne RDI ADCPs recording in the PD0 binary format. PD0 files from other RDI models, such as Ocean Surveyor and DVS, can also be read; take extra care when processing that data, since the pipeline’s defaults were tuned against Workhorse deployments.

Background

pyadps was built to process PD0 files from moored ADCP deployments that lack navigation (GPS) data. It was developed primarily for the COSINE and ECO-IOD mooring programs in the north Indian Ocean, which together span over 600 ADCP deployments — a scale that made it worth standardizing and documenting the processing steps rather than repeating ad hoc scripts for each dataset. The processing pipeline is designed to encourage a close look at the quality-control results before the velocity output is treated as final. The package currently processes only data recorded in Earth coordinates; Beam-coordinate support and the associated coordinate transformation are planned for a future release.

Features

• Read RDI binary files (PD0 format) with xarray integration

• Robust reading of corrupted or truncated binary files, with per-ensemble checksum verification and partial-data recovery

• Six-step quality control pipeline: time axis correction, sensor health, signal quality, profile operations, and velocity checks

• Interactive web interface (Streamlit) — no Python knowledge required

• Batch processing and multi-file combining

• CF Convention compliant output

• Reproducible processing via config.ini export

• Extensively tested: 4,200+ automated tests (pytest), 98% coverage

Quick Example

import pyadps

# Read an RDI file
ds = pyadps.read("deployment.000")

# Check system configuration
config = ds.fixed_leader.system_configuration()
print(f"Frequency: {config['Frequency']}")

# Access velocity data
velocity = ds['velocity']
print(f"Shape: {velocity.shape}")

# Export to NetCDF
ds.to_netcdf('output.nc')

Processing Pipeline

The diagram below adds the decision logic behind the steps that involve a judgment call — time diagnostics, sensor health, signal quality, and profile operations — on top of the overall pipeline order. Each of these appears as its own box: work down the diamonds inside it, answering the question at each one, before moving on to the next box in the main column. Velocity processing has no decision points of its own — its four checks (magnetic declination, velocity thresholds, despike, flatline) are each independently optional and can be applied in any combination.

Package Structure

pyadps is organized into three main components:

• Installation
• Quick Start
• Web Application
• Tutorials

Module Reference

• I/O Module
  • Architecture
  • Reading a File
  • Available Functions
  • Accessor Methods
  • Low-Level Access
  • Contents
  • See Also
• Processing Module
  • Processing Workflow
  • Quick Example
  • Module Overview
  • Config-Based Processing
  • Contents
  • See Also

Additional Resources

• Changelog

Getting Started

1. Install pyadps: See Installation for instructions

2. Read the Quick Start: Quick Start provides a 5-minute introduction

3. Try the Web App: Web Application covers the interactive interface

4. Go deeper: I/O Module and Processing Module cover the module details

Module Quick Reference

I/O Functions

Function	Description
pyadps.read()	Load complete ADCP dataset
pyadps.read_header()	Read file header metadata
pyadps.read_fixed_leader()	Read configuration data
pyadps.read_variable_leader()	Read sensor data
pyadps.read_velocity()	Read velocity arrays

Processing Classes

Class	Description
SensorHealthRunner	Check sensor diagnostics
SignalQualityRunner	Assess signal quality
VelocityCheckRunner	Validate velocities
ProfileOperationRunner	Profile operations
ProcessedDataset	Processed data container

Accessor Methods

Accessor	Namespace	Key Methods
Header	ds.header.*	check_file(), summary()
Fixed Leader	ds.fixed_leader.*	system_configuration(), validate()
Variable Leader	ds.variable_leader.*	bit_result_summary(), validate_timestamps()

Support

• Documentation: You’re reading it!

• Issue Tracker: GitHub Issues

• Source Code: GitHub Repository

License

pyadps is released under the MIT License.

Note

This version of the package was developed with extensive use of Claude (Anthropic) as a coding assistant.