ISO 15887:2013 establishes a source-coding data-compression algorithm applied to digital data and specifies how these compressed data shall be inserted into source packets for retrieval and decoding.

Source coding for data compression is a method utilized in data systems to reduce the volume of digital data to achieve benefits in areas including, but not limited to:

• reduction of transmission channel bandwidth;
• reduction of the buffering and storage requirement;
• reduction of data-transmission time at a given rate.

The characteristics of source codes are specified only to the extent necessary to ensure multi-mission support capabilities. ISO 15887:2013 does not attempt to quantify the relative bandwidth reduction, the merits of each approach discussed, or the design requirements for coders and associated decoders. Some performance information is included in CCSDS 120.0-G-2.

ISO 15887:2013 addresses only Lossless source coding, which is applicable to a wide range of digital data, both imaging and non-imaging, where the requirement is for a moderate data-rate reduction constrained to allow no distortion to be added in the data compression/decompression process. The decompression process is not addressed.