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Research and development engineers Michael Cassen (left) and Kyle Grindley demonstrate mounting CTD (conductivity, temperature, and depth) sensors on a batch of Deep SOLO autonomous floats being prepared by Scripps's Instrument Development Group for deployment at the end of the year. The floats can descend to depths up to 6,000 meters (20,000 feet), tripling the range of the first generation of floats in the global Argo network. Deep Argo's science goals are to measure the amount of heat stored in the deep ocean, to improve the understanding of regional and global sea-level change, and to provide systematic estimates of the deep and abyssal ocean circulation.

The ten new floats will add to an existing network of 82 Deep Argo floats.  Network leaders are hoping that the network will ultimately grow to include 1,200 units.