Dolphin Explorer GitHub

Formats

DE / PLATFORM SYSTEM

Bring your survey stack together.

Connect the vendor formats, parsed artifacts, and georeferenced rasters that make up a modern survey. Keep source data intact while Dolphin Explorer builds a faster working model around it.

SUPPORTED6 core format families

Vendor sonar, parsed artifacts, and georeferenced imagery.

RASTER ENGINEGDAL-backed I/O

Use the codecs already present in the survey toolchain.

POSITIONINGPROJ coordinate handling

Keep map products aligned as data moves through the workflow.

Compatibility reference

Find your format.

Select a format to see its extensions, intended use, and current support limits.

XTF

.xtf

Sidescan, sub-bottom, and magnetometer data

Support notes

Uses XTF Rev. 40 structures. A mixed file may produce multiple layers.

Setup guide

EdgeTech JSF

.jsf

Sidescan and sub-bottom data

Support notes

Message Type 80 is supported. Compressed JSF samples are not currently decoded.

Setup guide

SEG-Y

.segy, .sgy

Sub-bottom profiles

Support notes

Treated as a single-channel sub-bottom source.

Setup guide

Dolphin artifact

.dlpd

Indexed and decoded survey data

Support notes

Can be imported directly. Legacy .dpcache files are accepted on read.

Setup guide

GeoTIFF

.tif, .tiff

Georeferenced image or elevation raster

Support notes

Includes tiled, compressed, and BigTIFF inputs supported by GDAL.

Setup guide

Georeferenced image

.pgw, .jgw, .wld

PNG or JPEG map raster

Support notes

The world file provides georeferencing for the image.

Setup guide

Availability of a particular raster codec can depend on the GDAL build installed through vcpkg.

Project files

Organization and survey data, kept separate.

Project artifacts live in a data/ directory beside the manifest. Processing publishes replacements atomically and never modifies the original XTF or JSF source.

.dlp
Project manifest. JSON file storing project organization, sources, layers, contacts, and serialized workflow state.
.dlpd
Parsed artifact store. Indexed and decoded data used by the application. A durable workflow asset, not a disposable cache.
.dpcache
Legacy artifact. Older artifact extension, still accepted for backward-compatible reads.

Moving or backing up a project

Keep the .dlp manifest and its project data together. Deleting .dlpd files may remove parsed or processed work that is expensive or impossible to reproduce exactly.