CONVERTTYPE(1)

📦
version 0.24 · 5 versions
, in epel 10, epel 9, nixos 26.05, nixpkgs unstable, ubuntu resolute, ubuntu stonking

💖 CONVERTTYPE 💖 — the astconvertt era

okay bestie, so this is the manual page for ConvertType, aka the icon of format flippin'. Let me tell you everything, no gatekeeping. 🫶

✨ NAME ✨

ConvertType — convert known data types to each other 💅

🌈 SYNOPSIS 🌈

astconvertt [OPTION...] InputFile1 [InputFile2] ... [InputFile4]

🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

So ConvertType is literally part of GNU Astronomy Utilities 0.24 🎀 and what it does is, like, take any of the known input formats and glow them up into any of the known output formats. The output file keeps the same number of pixels as the input. No pixels were lost in the making of this conversion, periodt. ✨

Wanna know more? Run any of these, bestie. And lowkey the second one is the main character here — it gives you the whole tea on how to call ConvertType: expected input(s), output(s), and a full description of all the options. 😌

All options and their values:

$ astconvertt -P

Inputs/Outputs and options:

$ info astconvertt

Full section in manual/book:

$ info ConvertType

Full Gnuastro manual/book:

$ info gnuastro

And if the manual is giving you nothing and you're like "help 😭", you can get direct help from experienced Gnuastro users and developers. For more info, run:

$ info help-gnuastro

👑 OPTIONS 👑

ConvertType options, coming in hot 🔥:

🍓 Input:

  • -g, --globalhdu=STR/INT — use this HDU for all the inputs, and just ignore --hdu. one HDU to rule them all, fr fr.
  • -h, --hdu=STR/INT — FITS input HDU, and yes you can call it multiple times. slay.
  • -I, --ignorecase — ignore case when it's matching/searching columns. case? never heard of her.
  • --searchin=STR — pick your column(s) from: 'name', 'unit', 'comment'.
  • --stdintimeout=INT — micro-seconds to wait for standard input. ⏳

🌸 Output:

  • --bordercolor=STR — name of the color to use for the border. 💅
  • --cmappgfplots — color map to include in PGFPlots (that's in LaTeX, iykyk).
  • --colormap=STR[,FLT] — color map to use when you only gave a single channel. 🎨
  • -D, --dontdelete — don't delete the output if it already exists. let it live!!
  • -K, --keepinputdir — keep the input directory for automatic output. 🗂️
  • -l, --cmapblankcolor=STR — blank color name in color maps.
  • --outfitsnocommit — no Git commit in the 0-th HDU of the output FITS.
  • --outfitsnoconfig — no metadata in the 0-th HDU of the output FITS.
  • --outfitsnodate — no 'DATE' in the 0-th HDU of the output FITS.
  • --outfitsnoversions — no versions in the 0-th HDU of the output FITS.
  • -o, --output=STR — output filename or suffix. the classic. ✨
  • --rgbtohsv — convert RGB input into HSV (in FITS output).
  • -u, --quality=INT — quality of the output JPEG image (1 to 100). no bad selfies allowed. 📸
  • --wcslinearmatrix=STR — WCS linear matrix of the output ('pc' or 'cd').
  • -w, --widthincm=FLT — width in units of centimeters.
  • -x, --hex — hexadecimal encoding in EPS. Default: ASCII85. 🔡

💜 Flux:

  • -A, --forcemin — force --fluxmin, even when it's smaller than min. do it anyway bestie.
  • -B, --forcemax — force --fluxmax, even when it's larger than max.
  • -c, --change=STR — change pixel values 'from_1:to_1,from_2:to_2'.
  • -C, --changeaftertrunc — first truncate, then change pixel values. order matters!!
  • -H, --fluxhigh=FLT — higher flux truncation value.
  • -i, --invert — invert the values in JPEG and EPS/PDF. 🔄
  • -L, --fluxlow=FLT — lower flux truncation value.
  • -m, --maxbyte=INT — maximum byte value for all color channels.

🧚 Vector graphics (only for EPS or PDF outputs)

  • -b, --borderwidth=INT — border width in units of points (1/72 inch).
  • --listcolors — list names and RGB info of all the colors. rainbow inventory 🌈
  • --listfonts — list names of available fonts. 🔤
  • --markcolor=STR — name or number of the column with mark color.
  • --markfont=STR — name or number of the column with mark font name.
  • --markfontsize=STR — name or number of the column with mark font size.
  • --marklinewidth=STR — name or number of the column with line width.
  • --markrotate=STR — name or number of the column with mark rotation. spin it 🌀
  • --marks=STR — name of the mark information table.
  • --markshape=STR — name or number of the column with mark shapes: circle (1), plus (2), cross (3), ellipse (4), point(5), square (6) rectangle (7) and line (8).
  • --markshdu=STR — HDU in '--marks' (if it's a FITS file).
  • --marksize=STR[,STR] — name or number of the column(s) with mark size(s).
  • --marktext=STR — name or number of the column with mark text.
  • --marktextprecision=INT — number of decimals when the text column is a float column.
  • -O, --mode=STR — coordinate mode for marks ('wcs' or 'img').
  • -r, --markcoords=STR,STR — name or number of the columns with coordinates.
  • --showfonts — show all fonts in a PDF. font fashion show 💅
  • --sizeinarcmin — size column values are in arcmin (in WCS-mode).
  • --sizeinarcsec — size column values are in arcsec (in WCS-mode).
  • --sizeinpix — size column values are in pixels (in WCS-mode).

⭐ Operating modes:

  • -?, --help — give this help list.
  • --checkconfig — list all config files and variables read. 🔍
  • --cite — BibTeX citation for this program.
  • --config=STR — read configuration file STR immediately.
  • --config-prefix=STR — custom prefix of option names in config files.
  • --lastconfig — do not parse any more configuration files. we're done here ✋
  • --log — information about output(s) in a log file.
  • --minmapsize=INT — minimum bytes to avoid RAM automatically.
  • -N, --numthreads=INT — number of CPU threads to use. multithreaded queen 👑
  • --onlyversion=STR — only run if the program version is STR.
  • -P, --printparams — print the parameter values that will be used and abort.
  • --quietmmap — don't print mmap'd file's name and size.
  • -q, --quiet — only report errors, remain quiet about steps. 🤫
  • -S, --setdirconf — set default values for this directory and abort.
  • --usage — give a short usage message.
  • -U, --setusrconf — set default values for this user and abort.
  • -V, --version — print program version.
📌 Mandatory or optional arguments to long options are also mandatory or optional for any corresponding short options. so don't get cute with it.

GNU Astronomy Utilities home page: http://www.gnu.org/software/gnuastro/ 🫶

😭 REPORTING BUGS 😭

Report bugs to bug-gnuastro@gnu.org. (be nice, they're doing their best 💖)

Copyright © 2015-2025 Free Software Foundation, Inc. License GPLv3+: GNU General public license version 3 or later.

This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.

There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law. no cap, zero warranty.

Written/developed by Mohammad Akhlaghi ✨

💀 SEE ALSO 💀

The full documentation for ConvertType is maintained as a Texinfo manual. If the info and ConvertType programs are properly installed at your site, the command

info ConvertType

should give you access to the complete manual.

and that's the whole vibe bestie 🦋 this page is from GNU Astronomy Utilities 0.24, dated November 2025 — go forth and convert, you absolute icon 💅✨

📦 where this page comes from