Fix critical bug in date validation function and add comprehensive do…

[orbaps]

🐞 Critical Bug — Variable Name Error in validate_and_compare_dates() (DeeringAutoDownloadCode.py)

📘 Overview

During a detailed examination of the CoastlineExtraction repository, a critical bug was identified in the validate_and_compare_dates() function of DeeringAutoDownloadCode.py.
The issue causes a NameError whenever the function is executed, breaking the satellite data download pipeline, which is central to this project’s functionality.

---

🔍 Problem Description

In the function definition, the parameters are correctly named start_date and end_date.
However, inside the function body, undefined variables start_date_input and end_date_input are mistakenly used — leading to an immediate crash.

❌ Buggy Code

def validate_and_compare_dates(start_date, end_date):
    start_date_obj = datetime.strptime(start_date_input, '%Y-%m-%d')  # ❌ Undefined variable
    end_date_obj = datetime.strptime(end_date_input, '%Y-%m-%d')      # ❌ Undefined variable