11/02/2018 Newsround

You're watching Newsround

with me, Ricky.

First up, Dancing On Ice is back

on our screens this evening.

If you thought the celebs were good,

take a look at some of these figure

skaters who are competiting

in the Winter Olympics...

Oh, and look out for

a spectacular fall, too!

Incredible!

Sticking with the cold stuff,

head online to find out why actor

David Harbour is heading

to the Antarctic.

Clue - he's hoping to

dance with penguins!

Next, it's thought that in the UK

we use more than eight billion

plastic straws every year.

A group of kids in Scotland

are on a mission to get them banned.

It's because they want to help

protect our planet and cut

the amount of plastic that

gets thrown away.

They've already convinced

Glasgow Council, the biggest

in Scotland, to ditch plastic

straws, but their mission

doesn't stop there.

These kids are taking the ferry

to the Isle of Arran.

Around 5,000 people live

there and they want them

to quit using them to.

There's animals out

there who are in danger

because they're eating plastic.

What do you hope to do

with this campaign?

Just try and stop plastic

straws from being used

and start using paper straws.

It's our future and we need

to make sure that it's not

all gone when we grow up.

They call themselves

the Ocean Defenders.

A lot of plastic, when it's thrown

away, ends up in the sea.

It can stay there for hundreds

of years, because it doesn't rot

like a paper straw would.

This means it's harmful to both

animals and the environment.

They are talking to the kids

about what they're doing

so they can do the same.

I haven't really thought about it,

but now the presentation has

taught me a lot more about it.

It's very different now.

I think the most surprising

and interesting thing is how much

this does affect the environment.

You wouldn't expect that from wee

tiny plastic straws.

Maybe we can speak to some

of the cafes on the island.

Because I know that a lot

of the cafes do sell plastic straws.

So if we could maybe get them

to change to the paper straws,

it would be really good.

We're trying to make people stop

expecting a straw in their drink.

They are so knowledgeable

and they're really confident and

passionate in the way they speak.

Did you find their

arguments persuasive?

I mean, you've got

the plastic straws there.

Absolutely, yes.

This is my naughty pot.

Naughty pot no more!

You go, guys!

Now, we've seen humans

walking on the moon,

but will it ever be possible

for that to happen on Mars?

It might sound like an idea

for a new sci-fi movie,

but a research team have been

spending time in the Oman desert,

doing experiments that could one day

make that a reality.

Sending a manned mission to Mars has

been a space explorer's ambition

for years and these researchers

are hoping to make it a reality.

They're in the Oman desert

in the Middle East, doing

experiments that could one day help

humans to survive on the Red Planet.

But why Oman?

We need a place that looks as much

as Mars as possible.

And we found it here in Oman.

It's a beautiful place,

but it's most of all

a scientifically useful place,

and operationally useful.

Although still a distant dream,

it felt a little bit closer

on Tuesday when Elon Musk's company

SpaceX successfully launched

the world's most powerful rocket.

While getting there is one

challenge, astronauts will also be

need to survive on Mars.

That's why these

experiments are so crucial.

Once we will go to Mars

and we will stay on Mars.

We will have to use the resources

we find on Mars, because we cannot

bring everything from Earth.

That is called in situ resource

utilisation so we have to use

the things we find there.

First of all to sustain life there,

to sustain missions there

and then in the longer run,

for other things.

This vast desert is the perfect spot

to carry out tests like growing

vegetables and trying out

the bulky spacesuits.

Who knows, one day

similar scenes could be

taking place on Mars.

Finally, this has got to be one

of the best stories to come out

of the Winter Olympics so far.

When Norwegian skiathlon competitor

Simen Krueger took a tumble

in the early stages of his race,

he'd have been forgiven

for thinking it was game over.

But he got up, and he powered on.

And you'll never guess what...

He only won gold!

A lesson for life there.

Never give up!

That's all for today.

Newsround's back in the morning.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

Bye-bye!