ABC Listen Hi there, my name's Jack and you're listening to Newstime Hey there Jack Hi Jack Hello Jack I'm filling in for Ruby this week, counting down five stories from around Australia and the world On Newstime today we're meeting a speedy sheep shearer hearing about a beach on Mars and you'll find out what it feels like to be inside the body of a whale.
So, should we begin?
I'm as keen as a kidney bean.
Story number five. Have you ever been surfing?
I've been surfing. I've been at the beach and then it was at a wave pool at a water park and I kept on falling off.
It's kind of hard to balance.
Oh, yeah. It can be really hard to keep balance.
I've never tried surfing before.
Surfing is a sport where people stand on boards and catch waves.
It's a pretty fun hobby and, for some talented people, an extremely fun job.
Ewan woman Amy Donohoe has been coaching surfing for 15 years and as someone who is...
I was just... Surf League's championship tour, she's very well qualified.
As part of her job, Amy's noticed that Indigenous women, like her, are underrepresented in the sport.
There aren't very many Indigenous women giving surfing a go.
So she decided to change that by creating a free learn -to -surf program for young First Nations women on the New South Wales central coast.
It's called Saltwater Sisters.
The lessons teach surfing and water safety.
But for Amy, the real focus is on helping the young women connect.
They said, well, go figure out what that would take.
Towards the land? It reminds me of that scene in Moana where the little girl gets connected with the water.
Amy says the program is designed to help the women and girls develop a deep connection to the sea and the marine life like their ancestors had.
I feel a strong connection with the animals and the water and the taste in your mouth.
It's also a great way for them to connect with one another and build a sense of community.
You always want to go there like you want to stay there and you want to explore even more.
They like doing their...
Their first call in about 15 years and to go through the astronauts...
Already more than 20 young women have joined, hitting the water once a week.
Sisters Natalia and Nalissa join the program together.
Nalissa says it's nice to be around other girls who are like her and that they have a lot of fun.
Learning how to surf properly.
Catch big waves on a surfboard.
Hopefully the program can make a splash across Australia so everyone can dive on in.
Story number four. On Kangaroo Island off the coast of South Australia, horse riders practise an interesting tradition.
In winter, a group gathers every two weeks to put on their best riding outfits and travel to the island's hunt club.
But don't be fooled by the name.
There's no hunting that goes on at this club.
It doesn't make sense.
You want to keep on hunting, but you don't want to hunt animals.
Well, not exactly. The group get together not to hunt, but to hang out.
Although they've kept the old name, the club is more like a social gathering, where the friends ride horses together through farms and grassy paddocks.
I have different ways of hanging out with my friends.
Like, I just walk and talk.
I'll play soccer. do lots of running, do sport.
The leader of the group is called the Huntmaster.
They lead the group, riding through pastures, stopping for food, drinks and with time to chat.
Think of it like a big game of Follow the Leader.
Nathan the Huntmaster says it's a bit like a party that's on the go.
It's a day of celebrating with friends and exploring the island on horseback.
You don't normally ride horses and it's also something to do in your free time.
Because of how many exciting things are happening back home and in space around the world.
That sounds like an awful lot of social aspects of the event.
Fox hunting was an English tradition and was done in Australia too.
Foxes are considered an invasive species in Australia as they often hunt native Australian animals as food.
A lot of the animals we have today are endangered.
Yeah, that's right.
A lot of native Australian animals are endangered because of their predators, like foxes.
Although this club doesn't do any hunting, members of the group say it's a great way for the younger generations to learn about the island's wildlife.
13 -year -old Charlie from Colcane in New South Wales isn't your typical teenager.
Why? He's an expert sheep shearer.
Sheep shear or shear sheep.
Yep, that's what Charlie does and has been doing for the past eight years.
At just five years old, Charlie began shearing sheep, learning from his parents.
Shearing is basically...
I could get, like, a tool and, like, shear what the hell.
It involves quite a bit of skill, holding the sheep and making sure you don't shear too close to the sheep's skin.
When Charlie first began, he used blades because his mum didn't want him using an electric shearing tool.
It's a very good idea cos if a five -year -old had an electric razor, they'd just shave off all their hair.
Fast forward a few years and Charlie got his own electric shears and was spending most of his time using them.
He says some families relax by going away on holidays, but his family love to shear sheep together.
You see, domesticated sheep don't naturally shed.
They need their wool to be sheared off to stay healthy.
So that the sheep don't have stupidly large coats of wool because they get way too hot.
And it helps the sheep stay clean.
It also means we can use the wool for clothing or rugs.
In December last year, Charlie broke his personal record and sheared 150 sheep in one go.
It's impressive. I think Charlie likes shearing sheep because maybe, like, it's all calm and it's satisfying.
Charlie hopes to work in agriculture when he's older, as well as being a full -time sheep shearer.
And as for all the wool from the 150 sheep...
Maybe he piles it up and then jumps in.
..like jumping into a cloud.
Well done, Charlie.
A vast ocean, a sandy beach.
It may sound like I'm describing your next holiday destination, but they're actually both things scientists have recently discovered may have once existed on the planet Mars.
Scientists had predicted that a long time ago there was water on Mars.
Yeah, that's right.
Previous research has shown Mars once had flowing rivers, but there was always uncertainty about whether Mars had beaches.
A recent study using tech called a ground -penetrating radar has created a 3D map of Mars.
The technology works by sending radio waves into the ground, which helps to generate a visual image of what Mars once looked like.
There's water and land, but I think over time the sun got hotter and hotter and Mars, like, couldn't take the hit.
The pictures from the radar showed buried beaches, with parts of Mars resembling shorelines on Earth.
It's an exciting discovery because the new evidence suggests the beaches existed for a long time and that they would have had waves and tides.
Scientists are now wondering if there's renewed possibility for the discovery of life on Mars.
Shallow water, air and land is an environment that might be where life on...
..a bit like regular life down on Earth.
But what about the water needed to wash your body every day?
Is that possible on a spaceship?
In terms of showers and baths, no showers or baths in space.
And you're up there for a long time, right?
But you have like a...
Would you like to be one of the future scientists finding new discoveries on Mars?
Maybe it's going to be our next Earth.
Hmm, maybe one day.
Or maybe we could pack our bags and go on a quick holiday.
I like my holidays for fair, thank you.
You're right, me too.
Can I bring air in my luggage?
I wish to bring air...
And now it's time for...
Wow of the Week story made me go wow because I didn't know humpback whales were so curious.
A kayaker off the coast of Chile has had a trip unlike any other.
He ended up inside a whale's mouth.
Oh, my gosh. Cool. Kayaker Adrian Simancas was enjoying a kayak with his dad in the seas near the town of Punta Arenas when all of a sudden he felt like he was being lifted above the water.
He said it felt too strong to be a wave.
And then he saw something blue and white passing close to his face on either side.
Whoa! Adrian felt the slimy texture of the whale rushing against him.
He said in the moment he had no idea what was happening.
But then he thought, I've been swallowed!
briefly got swallowed by a humpback whale thankfully adrian wasn't actually swallowed all the way into a stomach instead just scooped up into the humpback whale's mouth star it might not be as romantic as you think um but yeah it's it's sound it sounds it's funny it sounds silly but actually a lot of work went into making those systems because you're up there for a long time hygiene is actually really really important and it's one of the most complicated pieces of kit you can have.
I would punch that.
Say, let me out. I'd be like, I'm stuck in here forever and I'll just lie down and relax.
You'd relax? I think I'd be trying my hardest to escape.
Wiggle my way out to the teeth.
It's only in a whale's belly.
What would you say to kids who want to be astronaut like you?
Yeah, I would say to all kids that want to pursue space careers or work in STEM or or become an astronaut that you should absolutely pursue your dream and pursue it with arrogance.
Like, don't hold back.
And if you wanna do a career like this, you should have a pipe in your house.
This is because they're designed to eat small fish, shrimp, and plankton.
It's likely the whale was feeding on a school of fish and accidentally picked up Adrian on the way.
I guess that kayaking trip will go down in history for Adrian and his dad?
Ugh, and what a... pathway to fit a career.
To work in space, to work in STEM, there's so many options to try out lots of different types, see what you actually like, and maybe it's something that you don't expect.
So keep your eyes open as you go through the journey.
And it's a really fantastic, wonderful field to work in.
So I really encourage you to pursue that.
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We'll be back soon with another regular episode of News Time.
Catch you then. News Time is an ABC Kids Listen podcast.
For other awesome podcasts to play, music to move to and stories and soundtracks for sleep, download the ABC Kids Listen app.
It's free from your app store.
