A .CEL file varies by the workflow that created it, though in genomics it most commonly refers to an Affymetrix/Thermo Fisher microarray output capturing raw probe intensities, where a chip packed with countless probes is scanned after hybridization and each probe’s brightness is saved into the CEL file—typically mapped by grid coordinates or probe indices—along with metadata, producing raw measurements that must be processed with background correction, normalization, and probe summarization through Bioconductor tools like oligo and supported by files such as .CDF and .CHP.
In animation and graphics, "cel" traces back to physical celluloid used in 2D animation, and a CEL file typically represents a single raster frame or layer—often transparent—stacked over backgrounds or other layers, usually appearing in sequences like `walk_001.cel` along with palette files or related images, though because different tools used different CEL variants, some open in standard editors while others require the original software or palette; meanwhile, certain games and niche apps also use `.CEL` as a custom sprite/texture container, so the extension alone can’t identify it, and the fastest way to figure out which type you have is by checking its origin, nearby files, naming patterns, size, and a quick look in a text/hex viewer to see whether it resembles microarray metadata or a binary art/game asset.
In 2D animation, a "cel" refers to the old celluloid drawings where each sheet carried a single layer of art photographed over a background, and digital animation mirrors this by layering characters, shadows, and effects; here, a CEL file is a raster image holding one layer or frame—such as a character pose or lip-sync mouth shape—using transparency so it can be cleanly composited over other layers.
Because ".CEL" has multiple lineage paths, an animation CEL isn’t guaranteed to follow one universal image format and may be indexed-color, program-specific, or stored with a separate palette; you’ll typically see them in structured art folders or numbered sequences, and depending on the format, they may open easily or require the originating tool, with the CEL representing only one raster layer/frame that together with others forms the full animated result.
If you cherished this article therefore you would like to collect more info concerning CEL file software i implore you to visit our website. To classify a .CEL file quickly, the most reliable move is to examine where it came from, since genomic sources typically point to microarray CELs, whereas art/game pipelines suggest animation layers or asset formats; look at nearby files for confirmation—microarray sets include .CDF or .CHP, while animation/game folders contain many numbered CELs and palette files—and then compare file size, count, and a small header peek in a text/hex viewer to spot either readable array metadata or primarily binary graphics/asset data.

".CEL isn’t a single universal standard" means CEL files aren’t guaranteed to be compatible, leading to cases where Affymetrix CELs record raw intensity data, animation CELs hold raster cels or palette images, and game CELs pack proprietary resources, all under the same extension; because of that, identifying the correct flavor requires either context about its source or a look at file headers and related files.