If a trip to Mystic Seaport or the Mystic Aquarium “wets” your appetite to get out on the water yourself, then an expedition aboard one of the 50-plus foot research vessels of Project Oceanology will quench your thirst. Affiliated with the University of Connecticut, the organization’s trained oceanographers and marine biologists literally trawl the ocean floor with nets in search of denizens of the deep to bring up for a closer look by kids, who can touch and hold crabs, lobsters, sea cucumbers, and other sea creatures. At another station during the 2.5-hour cruise, kids can try their hand at testing the chemistry of seawater, examining salinity, oxygen content, and other properties essential to ocean life. Note: trips are open only to kids ages 6 and up.