Oceanography (CTD)
A CTD (also known as Sonde) is a multi-parameter water monitoring system that is designed to simultaneously measure a range of biological and physical properties in both salt and fresh water. This oceanography instrument is used to measure the conductivity, temperature and pressure of the seawater.
The instrument is a cluster of sensors that commonly scans at a rate of 24Hz. The titanium housing allows sampling to depths in excess of 10,000 metres. The CTD cast collects high resolution data that upon retrieval is downloaded to a computer and specialised software is used to graph and interpret data. The information that it collects can be used by scientists to investigate how physical parameters are related, and thus can make inferences about the occurrence of certain biological processes. This information can contribute to bettering our understanding of certain factors like species distribution and presence in certain areas of the ocean.