XMM-Newton Data Analysis

Please note: odffix is not available in the current SAS version 5.3.0.! It is available in older SAS versions and will be again available in the next release of the XMMSAS.
Before you run any chain metatask like epchain, emchain, rgsproc, or omichain of your ODF data set, please make sure that your ODF is complete. You can easily check this by looking for the house keeping data. These are file named ...PMH.. for the EPIC PN, ...PEH... for the EPIC MOS and OM, and ...PFH... for the RGS. If these files are not in the ODF you have to fix it by using the XMMSAS task odffix. The purpose of the task odffix is to write the coordinates and position angle of the observation into the header of the ODFs. You will find the information about the Ra, Dec, and posangle given on the XMM-Newton Observation Search Page. Simply type in the orbit/revolution number and/or the observation number of your observation.
All this information has to be given in degrees. In our example, we took orbit 0026 and observation number 0116150601. From the log file we get:
 
RA=   03 36 47.33    ->   54.197208
DEC=+ 00 35 23.9     -> +  0.589972
PA=  251 15 37.3     ->  251.260361 - 360 = -108.739639
In our example, the odffix task will look like this:
odffix odfdir=. findnominalpointing=no ra=54.197208 dec=+0.589972 posangle=-108.739639
Because we have to give the Ra, Dec, and Posangle by hand, the `findnominalpointing' has to be set to `no'. The task odffix will create some new files, here given for the EIPC PN:

time correlation file (TCS),
attitude history file (ATS),
periodic housekeeping files (PMH),
reconstructed orbit file (ROS) and
ODF summary file (SUM).

These files will be used by the metatask like epchain, emchain, etc., (or the individual tasks). Now we are ready to run the chain task. Please note!. If you have to fix the ODF yourself by using odffix, do not use the task odfingest. This task assumes a correct complete ODF.