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- Astropy v5.2.1 »
- FITS File Handling (`astropy.io.fits`) »
- Executable Scripts

# Executable Scripts

`astropy` installs a couple of useful utility programs on your system that are built with `astropy`.

## fitsinfo

`fitsinfo` is a command-line script based on astropy.io.fits for printing a summary of the HDUs in one or more FITS files(s) to the standard output.

Example usage of `fitsinfo`:

1. Print a summary of the HDUs in a FITS file:

       $ fitsinfo filename.fits

       Filename: filename.fits
       No.    Name         Type      Cards   Dimensions   Format
       0    PRIMARY     PrimaryHDU     138   ()
       1    SCI         ImageHDU        61   (800, 800)   int16
       2    SCI         ImageHDU        61   (800, 800)   int16
       3    SCI         ImageHDU        61   (800, 800)   int16
       4    SCI         ImageHDU        61   (800, 800)   int16

2. Print a summary of HDUs of all the FITS files in the current directory:

       $ fitsinfo *.fits

## fitsheader

`fitsheader` is a command line script based on astropy.io.fits for printing the header(s) of one or more FITS file(s) to the standard output in a human- readable format.

Example uses of fitsheader:

1. Print the header of all the HDUs of a .fits file:

       $ fitsheader filename.fits

2. Print the header of the third and fifth HDU extension:

       $ fitsheader --extension 3 --extension 5 filename.fits

3. Print the header of a named extension, e.g. select the HDU containing keywords EXTNAME=’SCI’ and EXTVER=’2’:

       $ fitsheader --extension "SCI,2" filename.fits

4. Print only specific keywords:

       $ fitsheader --keyword BITPIX --keyword NAXIS filename.fits

5. Print keywords NAXIS, NAXIS1, NAXIS2, etc using a wildcard:

       $ fitsheader --keyword NAXIS* filename.fits

6. Dump the header keywords of all the files in the current directory into a machine-readable csv file:

       $ fitsheader --table ascii.csv *.fits > keywords.csv

7. Specify hierarchical keywords with the dotted or spaced notation:

       $ fitsheader --keyword ESO.INS.ID filename.fits
       $ fitsheader --keyword "ESO INS ID" filename.fits

8. Compare the headers of different fits files, following ESO’s `fitsort` format:

       $ fitsheader --fitsort --extension 0 --keyword ESO.INS.ID *.fits

9. Same as above, sorting the output along a specified keyword:

       $ fitsheader -f -s DATE-OBS -e 0 -k DATE-OBS -k ESO.INS.ID *.fits

10. Sort first by OBJECT, then DATE-OBS:

        $ fitsheader -f -s OBJECT -s DATE-OBS *.fits

Note that compressed images (HDUs of type `CompImageHDU`) really have two headers: a real BINTABLE header to describe the compressed data, and a fake IMAGE header representing the image that was compressed. Astropy returns the latter by default. You must supply the `--compressed` option if you require the real header that describes the compression.

With Astropy installed, please run `fitsheader --help` to see the full usage documentation.

## fitscheck

`fitscheck` is a command line script based on astropy.io.fits for verifying and updating the CHECKSUM and DATASUM keywords of .fits files. `fitscheck` can also detect and often fix other FITS standards violations. `fitscheck` facilitates re-writing the non-standard checksums originally generated by astropy.io.fits with standard checksums which will interoperate with CFITSIO.

`fitscheck` will refuse to write new checksums if the checksum keywords are missing or their values are bad. Use `--force` to write new checksums regardless of whether or not they currently exist or pass. Use `--ignore-missing` to tolerate missing checksum keywords without comment.

Example uses of fitscheck:

1. Add checksums:

       $ fitscheck --write *.fits

2. Write new checksums, even if existing checksums are bad or missing:

       $ fitscheck --write --force *.fits

3. Verify standard checksums and FITS compliance without changing the files:

       $ fitscheck --compliance *.fits

4. Only check and fix compliance problems, ignoring checksums:

       $ fitscheck --checksum none --compliance --write *.fits

5. Verify standard interoperable checksums:

       $ fitscheck *.fits

6. Delete checksum keywords:

       $ fitscheck --checksum remove --write *.fits

With `astropy` installed, please run `fitscheck --help` to see the full program usage documentation.

## fitsdiff

`fitsdiff` provides a thin command-line wrapper around the `FITSDiff` interface. It outputs the report from a `FITSDiff` of two FITS files, and like common diff-like commands returns a 0 status code if no differences were found, and 1 if differences were found:

With `astropy` installed, please run `fitsdiff --help` to see the full program usage documentation.