Montage Modules

Montage is a toolkit comprised of several modules, rather than a single executable. This design has many benefits: end users are able to adapt the code for their own purposes, and the software can be scaled across large-scale, parallel systems. The modules generate multiple files during mosaic creation that can be used as QA tools to ensure proper background matching and photometric and astrometric accuracy.

Below is an overview of each module for creating mosaics, and analyzing and processing FITS files.

See the m101 Tutorial for a complete mosaic-creation workflow.

Also, the sample script for creating a Pleiades mosaic is a good introduction to using Montage.

Create Mosaics:

Convert FITS images or mosaics into grayscale or color JPEG images mJPEG
Create a FITS header template for use in mosaic creation mMakeHdr
Create a 2MASS, SDSS or DSS mosaic based on a size and location mExec
Create a mosaic from images already in the same projection mAdd
mAddExec
Re-project and mosaic your images, without background rectification mImgtbl
mProjExec
mAdd
Re-project and mosaic your images, with background rectification mImgtbl
mProjExec
mOverlaps
mDiffExec
mBgModel
mFitExec
mAdd

Analyze FITS Files:

Generate metadata from a set of FITS images mImgtbl
Generate metadata from a set of header files mHdrtbl
Filter an image metadata table down to those records representing FITS files that overlap a footprint on the sky mCoverageCheck
mSubset
Retrieve the header from a FITS image mGetHdr
Check the validity of a FITS image's header mHdrCheck

Process FITS Files:

Create a set of tiled images or header templates from a FITS file or header mTileImage
mTileHdr
Re-project FITS images mProject
mProjectPP
Convert FITS data to a different data type (ie, integer to floating-point) mConvert
Replace a particular set of values in a FITS image with NaNs (or vice-versa) mNaN
Remove the background from an image mFlattenExec
Replace a FITS image's header with one from an ASCII header template mPutHdr
Re-size a FITS image mShrink
Create a "cutout" of a FITS image mSubimage