Description of Format
A BUFR message is composed of six sections, numbered zero through five.
- Sections 0, 1 and 5 contain static metadata, mostly for message identification.
- Section 2 is optional; if used, it may contain arbitrary data in any form wished for by the creator of the message (this is only advisable for local use).
- Section 3 contains a sequence of so-called descriptors that define the form and contents of the BUFR data product.
- Section 4 is a bit-stream containing the message's core data and meta-data values as laid out by Section 3.
The product description contained in Section 3 can be made sophisticated and non-trivial by the use of replication and/or operator descriptors. (See below for a brief overview of the different kinds of descriptors; refer to the WMO Guide on BUFR for further detail.)
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