Kathy's Carriacou diary: Feel the heat

Day 1

Kate told us, while we overlooked the sea, she wants ice, a thermometer and suntan lotion.

Really enjoyed the day. It's all hard though - ice perhaps near impossible in three days in this humidity and this heat and so hard to make from scratch.

A thermometer needs to measure temperature accurately to 0°C without adding in a load of heat energy and melting the ice.

Jonathan is trying out a resistance thermometer. I'm trying to melt and then blow glass to take a standard glass bulb thermometer. The difficulty is ... can I melt the glass? I'd assumed that because we had a kiln we could melt glass but the 'kiln' is just a big furnace. So it probably won't work.

Deeply worried after first few attempts. Then...oh joy...a bit of glass that I'd begrudgingly stuck into the side of the furnace twisted and melted delightfully but too thin for a capillary for a thermometer. But it melted - proof it can be done!

Had to leave the kiln for Mike B to make his methanol and spent time helping J to wind his 1000s of turns for coils and helping Mike L to lift water to a high barrel. Ellen did an amazing job of climbing a coconut tree. She's a great asset. Botany seems so alien from physics. I wouldn't remember any more plants if I practised for a lifetime. I chose physics in the first place 'cos I hated remembering stuff and enjoyed understanding it. And yet this alien topic is so relevant and useful. And fun!

A very long day. But exciting and fun. And great to be in such a helpful team. From suntan lotion to ice. And it's all science. A delight to have such variety. Think I'll sleep well!

Day 2

A VERY hot day. Found, carried, dropped and burnt chunks of tree. Tried desperately to get a flame hot enough to melt glass. Couldn't. Not melting it properly to blow it into a bulb. Arghh!

Had to give up on blowing a bulb - can't get hot enough flames. Tried charcoal and bellows and still couldn't get blob of molten glass.

Just so hot. So sweaty. So cross that waited ages for crew to come to film my 'frustration' too and by the time they came not only had someone else broken one decent bit of my glass - stretching - I then broke my other decent bit of glass - stretching! So my frustration scene is red frustration. So I was stomping about, with sweat all over and smoke in my eyes, wanting to kick the kiln. Sarah (the director) said I looked like I was about to cry during my filmed bit. Not crying, just cross, hot and bothered.

Sealed the thermometer with Ellen's sealant made from acidified smoked resin.

Leapt into sea afterwards and the world seemed a saner place.

Day 3

An exciting day!

All of us a little manic - wanting to be sure we get our stuff working and finished in time.

Mike B frantically making ether in the shade all day. Ellen burning herself to a frazzle on the beach testing her suntan lotion. Mike L claiming to have created the best vacuum pump. Jon and I trying to test and calibrate our thermometers and help set up the ice-making.

Some mad, mad moments. Mike B pretending to have drunk the rum and looking so deliciously pissed it was untrue. Me, Jonathan and Mike L taking half an hour to decide how to insulate the ice-maker. One of us alone would have done it adequately in 10 mins. Although I guess the final situation was much better I suppose.

Then, just as we were finally about to try the ice-making and the sun was looking dangerously close to the horizon, everyone starts suggesting final changes and improvements...as we were running out of time.

People running; Ellen's legs burning up; people knocking over Ellen's distillation in the fire again; Jon and Mike L getting water into the barrel; Mike B still finishing ether; fighting over where to do the ice-making...a crazy, crazy whirl...and the sun kept getting lower.

Finally we went for it.

Mike L's vacuum pump WAS amazing. He crushed the container! It was all over so fast it was untrue. Barely any reading on my thermometer (we'd dumped Jonathan's thermometer for this experiment by now as it wasn't sensitive enough).

START AGAIN - as the sun gets lower. Big argument: do we ease down the vacuum? I say "yes"...we need less tin crushing and more gentle ether evaporation. If we do that, how? All disagree...the sky gets darker.

Finally, we restrict the flow of water so the vacuum is more gentle. This time it lasts and lasts. The thermometer drops but so slowly. It goes to a third of the way down, so 10°C temperature drop. After 20 mins it goes to half the way down - that's 15°C temp drop. And maybe to 15°C in time. But the thermal constant isn't good. It might even be frozen already?!?

The final moment? NO ICE! Just cool bottle. It showed some condensation though and a series of bits of kit that worked impressively. With just a bit more time I'm sure we could do it.

We all ran and leapt into the sea in delighted frenzy. WOW! What crazy fun.

But what challenge next?