The Tetracorder user guide: version 4.4

Imaging spectroscopy mapping software assists in the identification and mapping of materials based on their chemical properties as expressed in spectral measurements of a planet including the solid or liquid surface or atmosphere. Such software can be used to analyze field, aircraft, or spacecraft data; remote sensing datasets; or laboratory spectra. Tetracorder is a set of software algorithms commanded through an expert system to identify materials based on their spectra (Clark and others, 2003). Tetracorder also can be used in traditional remote sensing analyses, because some of the algorithms are a version of a matched filter. Thus, depending on the instructions fed to the Tetracorder system, results can range from simple matched filter output, to spectral feature fitting, to full identification of surface materials (within the limits of the spectral signatures of materials over the spectral range and resolution of the imaging spectroscopy data). A basic understanding of spectroscopy by the user is required for developing an optimum mapping strategy and assessing the results.