Primarily starting in the evening of Day Four, throughout Day Five, and even into the early hours of Day Six, the students on our Voyage of Discovery were dedicated to collecting the data they would need to test their hypotheses. Some students started collecting data while the Half Moon was still docked at Old Lyme, CT, but most took advantage of our 40-hour layover at East Haddam, CT.

During the data collection phase, each student established a work schedule for gathering data, collected and analyzed samples, and recorded their findings.

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Air Pressure, Humidity, & Temperature

Students: Danielle & Tahari
Senior Crew Advisor: Gary Coolidge
Instruments: Barometer, hygrometer, and thermometer.

During the Half Moon's data layover at East Haddam on Day Five, Danielle and Tahari used a combination barometer, hygrometer, and thermometer to measure air pressure, relative humidity, and air temperature at half-hour intervals. They then compared the readings of these three atmospheric conditions, seeking to learn whether any connection exists between them.

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Students: Jessica & Nora
Senior Crew Advisor: Gary Coolidge
Instruments: Calculator, croutons, measuring tape, stopwatch.

When the Half Moon reached its layover destination of East Haddam on Day Four, Casey and Jesse spent the early evening taking readings each half-hour of the current speed and direction of the Connecticut River. They continued to record current speed throughout Day Five and into the early morning of Day Six.

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Height of Tide

Students: Carlos & Gabriel
Senior Crew Advisor: Bob Wardwell
Instruments: Lead line.

On the morning of Day Four, Carlos and Gabriel used a lead line to collect a series of water depth readings at our moorage at Old Lyme.

Throughout our data layover on Day Five, they once again used the lead line to mark the water's depth throughout a tidal cycle. In this instance, rather than having them go out on the channel to collect data, Mr. Wardwell rigged the lead line so that students could deploy it from the safety of the deck at night.

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Height of Sun & Atmospheric Conditions

Students: David & Nick
Senior Crew Advisor: Jennifer Reilly
Instruments: Barometer, compass, digital thermometer, quadrant.

During the ship's data collection layover on Day Five, David and Nick used a quadrant to track the height of the sun and a compass to mark its direction. Simultaneously, they used a barometer and digital thermometer to record air pressure and air temperature readings, seeking to discover whether the sun's position affected these readings. As part of this celestial tracking, they were also able to determine local true noon and true south.

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Mechanical Advantage

Students: Carolann & Oksãna
Senior Crew Advisor: Sarah Read
Instruments: Spring scale, lead ballast ingot, block & tackle system.

On Day Five , Ms. Read and Mr. Hansen helped Carolann and Oksãna construct a block & tackle-based simple machine on the weather deck. Carolann and Oksãna then rigged this simple machine to lift a lead ingot 12" off the deck, using from one to four pulleys to do so. While one student lifted the weight, her partner read the attached spring scale to record the pounds of force required to lift the weight, as well as the distance they needed to pull the lead to achieve a repeated effect, thus testing the mechanical advantage provided by the system.

Solar Energy

Students: Alex & Jamie
Senior Crew Advisor: Jurgen Schuijer
Instruments: Compass, quadrant, solar panel array, voltometer.

On Day Five , during the Half Moon's data layover, Alex and Jamie connected a voltometer to a fixed pair of horizontal solar panels to measure solar energy output. They also used a quadrant to measure the altitude of the sun and a compass to determine its direction. Like David and Nick, Alex and Jamie were able to accurately determine the time of local true noon and true south.