Conscriptus (Senator)

1st Voyage

• May 2022 - Preparations begin

  We are hoping to make this an annual project and integral part of our curriculum as we learn about the many important aspects of Marine Sciences and the Maritime Industry. Our students in Marine Studies 1, Marine Engineering and Marine Biology will also be following our mini-boat while it is on its journey at sea.  Our Media team will be updating with pictures along the way. 

  May 2022

  Students began building their miniboat in May. Here are some pictures from Jacob and Peter (Media Team) of the process so far:
  

  

  May 27, 2022 – Ready!

  The students completed the boat and delivered it to Greg Henry who made arrangements to transport it to New Jersey and onboard the M/V Bermuda Islander.

  

   

• May 31, 2022 - Launched off the M/V Bermuda Islander

  Here are some pictures of Greg delivering the CONSCRIPTUS to the docks, handing the boat off to the new crew, and the boat stored below deck.

  

  May 31, 2022 – Launched!

  We received an email that the CONSCRIPTUS was launched off the M/V Bermuda Islander on May 31, 2022 at 20:00 UTC.

  “We successfully launch the boat today at 16:00 in position 36-44.4’N 071-35.6’W. Photos and video we will send from Bermuda. Kind regards, Capt. Dmytro Sefer, m/v Bermuda Islander”

  Special thanks to Captain Sefer and Greg Henry for all the support. This is the 16th miniboat launch from the M/V Bermuda Islander!

  June 2022 

  This project was highlighted in the June 2022 Educational Passages Newsletter:

  

  NEW MARINE SCIENCE MINIBOAT PROGRAM PILOTED AT BRIEN MCMAHON HIGH SCHOOL

  Students at the Marine Science Academy at Brien McMahon High School in Norwalk, Connecticut began their first miniboat project this year thanks to support from local partners. Their goal is to make it an annual project and an integral part of the curriculum as a unique way of learning about the many important aspects of Marine Sciences and the Maritime Industry. Their boat, the CONSCRIPTUS (SENATOR), was set to sea on May 31 by the crew of the M/V Bermuda Islander. It is also sending additional data for students from the onboard sensor package which has been interesting to track as Tropical Storm Alex traveled past. The data will be collected all summer and the learning will continue into the fall and beyond.

• September 2022 - Passage through Tropical Storm Danielle

  

• January 2023 - Approaching Scotland, sails through Shetland and Orkney Islands

  MINIBOAT CONSCRIPTUS APPROACHING COAST OF SCOTLAND – Update January 27, 2023

  After 240 days at sea and traveling over 15,000km from the USA, the Conscriptus, was approaching Scotland at the end of January. 

  On January 25, Ms. Stymiest said about the approach to Scotland, that “the Conscriptus is about 70 km west of the Shetland Islands and traveling at a speed of 2kts, but today we are seeing the winds move the boat towards the south. This is a big distance in relative terms to the small miniboat, so it is hard to predict exactly where (and if) the boat will land at this point, but we (the students and we hope the public too) should keep an eye on the winds and currents to make our own predictions and forecasts. That is a big part of our program – an educational experience for all.”

  It was launched on May 31, 2022 from the M/V Bermuda Islander thanks to Captain Dmytro Sefer and crew during their weekly transit from Salem, NJ to Bermuda. The students followed the journey and track from the Educational Passages website, including through Tropical Storm Alex and post-hurricane Danielle in September 2022. By November, it started to approach Ireland, but continued to travel northeast. By the middle of January 2023, it started to head south between the Hebrides and mainland Scotland. Cassie Stymiest, Executive Director of Educational Passages who helps students around the world with these miniboat projects, reached out to some friends on Facebook (“The days are just packed”, see https://www.facebook.com/tdajp) and alerted them to a potential landing on the west coast of Scotland. 

  A rescue mission was planned, but as the weekend approached the winds shifted and sent the boat north.

  While the boat soon ended up sailing north again, those friends continued to track the boat and share about the project, hoping it could be recovered in the Shetland or Orkney Islands. 

  Hear more about the project on BBC Shetland Radio’s evening show (starting at 24 minutes in) which aired January 25:

• February 10, 2023 - Landed in Telavåg, Norway

  MINIBOAT CONSCRIPTUS LANDS IN Telavåg, NORWAY

  After 255 days at sea and traveling over 16,000 km from the USA (Norwalk, Connecticut), the Conscriptus, a 1.5m long uncrewed student sailboat (miniboat) made landfall on Sotra, in Telavåg, Norway on February 10, 2023. It was recovered on February 11 by Steven Anderson, and will next be brought to a nearby school for students in both countries to meet and learn from each other.

  Educational Passages has been working with Brien McMahon High School’s (BHMS) Marine Science Academy in Norwalk, Connecticut as a part of their Miniboat Program. During the 2021-2022 school year, students in the Marine Studies 2 class, which is the second course in the school’s Marine Pathway Program, prepared their very first miniboat as a new learning opportunity.

  Those students were in 10th grade at the time, and are now currently in 11th grade and have been tracking the boat across the Atlantic since it was launched in May of 2022. The students named their boat, the “RV Constriptus,” because they are the Senators of Brien McMahon (Conscriptus is latin for Senator). 

  Ms. Eva Bartush was their teacher at the time and continues to teach several of the students who built the boat last year in the new IB Marine Science Class. Ms. Bartush is currently the Marine Science Academy Coordinator and Science Department Chair Person at BMHS and teaches Marine Studies 1 in addition to the IB Marine Science class. About the project, she said, “the students worked for several weeks in different teams with a variety of responsibilities to contribute to the completion of the boat. It was a really incredible program that taught the students teamwork and a wide variety of skills. I’m very proud of these students for their collaboration on this project and taking part in a global initiative with Educational Passages that is now connecting them across the ocean.” 

  It was launched on May 31, 2022 from the M/V Bermuda Islander (who have launched 15 other miniboats for the program over the years) thanks to Captain Dmytro Sefer and crew during their weekly transit from Salem, NJ to Bermuda. Then, the tracking began. The students followed the journey and track from the Educational Passages website, including through Tropical Storm Alex and post-hurricane Danielle in September 2022. By November, it started to approach Ireland, but continued to travel northeast. By the middle of January 2023, it started to head south between the Hebrides and mainland Scotland. Cassie Stymiest, Executive Director of Educational Passages who helps students around the world with these miniboat projects, reached out to some friends on Facebook (“The days are just packed”, see https://www.facebook.com/tdajp) and alerted them to a potential landing on the west coast of Scotland. 

  The miniboat sailed between Shetland and Orkney Islands, and by February 10 it made landfall in Norway at about 60.26473, 4.9567. After another Facebook post, local contacts were found and Steven Anderson went out early Saturday morning, February 11, to look for the boat. It was found on the rocks and pulled to safety.

  

  This boat had two GPS systems onboard. The reports from the main GPS are displayed on the map at the top of this page. Here below is where you can see the data reporting from the second GPS which is connected to the sensor package by MakerBuoy. In addition to reporting location with a secondary GPS tracker, this system is also collecting air temperature, water temperature, and orientation.

  There is also a camera connected to the sensor pack, which took lots of pictures during its voyage so far. Here are a select few:

         

  On February 12, the Bergens Tidende (Martin Hirth) wrote an article about the recovery, Den 16.000 kilometer lange ferden endte i Telavåg: Minibåt fra USA ble funnet i fjæresteinen lørdag (The 16,000 kilometer journey ended in Telavåg: A mini-boat from the USA was found in the spring rock on Saturday)

  

  A story was also published in the Shetland Times, Mini sailing boat discovered by isles man in Norway

  And on Vestnytt: Gjorde overraskande funn i Telavåg: – Trudde det var ein stor plastdings (Made a surprising discovery in Telavåg: – Thought it was a large plastic gadget)

  February 13, 2023 Update

  After Steven Anderson pulled the boat off the rocks and onto the grass, the boat was later spotted by a group of friends who were walking nearby. Inge Sluk contacted us and shared that they found the boat and then opened the hatch. We (Educational Passages) put them in contact with local Environmental Advocate Kenneth Bruvik who was planning to visit the area with students he works with on beach cleanups on Monday. They all met (Inge, Kenneth, and others) where the boat washed up and recovered it successfully by boat. They also picked up some other marine debris that had washed up in the same area. This is a great opportunity that puts our work in perspective.

  Here are some photos (courtesy of Kenneth Bruvik):

  

  The boat and debris will be brought to a local school (Danielsen Sotra) and a video connection with students back in the US is now being scheduled.

  February 14, 2023 Update

  Kenneth was interviewed on the BBC Radio Shetland as a follow-up from Cassie’s interview on January 15:

  And the Brien McMahon High School proudly announced on Facebook that their boat had been recovered in Norway:

  Brien McMahon School would like to thank Rowayton Civic Association, Voigt Maritime Inc, Greg Henry, and the Marine Science Academy supporter The Per and Astrid Heidenreich Family Foundation, for their funding and support of this project.

• Student Connections

  February 15, 2023

  The miniboat was taken to NORCE, where researcher Ingvar Henne made an inspection for needed repairs.

  February 23, 2023

  Students in CT, USA met with those at Danielsen School in Sotra, Norway over Zoom.

  In attendance from the USA were:

  • Ms. Eva Bartush and students at Brien McMahon High School (Norwalk, CT, USA)
  • Cassie Stymiest, Educational Passages (NH, USA)

  And in attendance from Norway were:

  • Harald Ruud and students at Danielsen School (Sotra, Telavåg, Norway)
  • Kenneth Bruvik, Environmental Advocate
  • Ingvar Henne, Research Director Autonomous Systems and IoT, NORCE
  • Marte Haave, Senior Researcher, NORCE (via Zoom)

  An article about the event was published in Vestnytt, Minibåten får nytt liv og skal ut på havet igjen (The mini-boat gets a new life and is going out to sea again)