Design and Technology KS2: What makes mako sharks such fast swimmers?

ANDY TORBET:Welcome to Beyond Bionic on BBC Teach. I'm Andy Torbet, the show's presenter, and on every episode I go up against some of nature's best athletes and try and match their super skills.

ANDY TORBET:And here is what happened when I tried to match the speed and jumping abilities of the mako shark.

ANDY TORBET:We're off the cost of California. We're on a search for one of the fastest fish in the sea. Okay got to go, makos don't hang around for long.

ANDY TORBET:'Meet the mako. 'These animals are super fast and can reach speeds of up to 46mph. 'And their speed even allows them to jump out of the water too.

ANDY TORBET:'This awesome skill is called breaching, 'making them one of the ocean's best high-jumpers.

ANDY TORBET:'They can reach heights of up to 9 metres. 'That's higher than two double-decker busses.

ANDY TORBET:'My Beyond Bionic challenge is to swim as fast as the mako shark, 'and match its ability to jump out of the water. 'To do this, I need to use science and technology 'to perfect my propulsion.

ANDY TORBET:'Something the mako is naturally awesome at. 'Propulsion is the pushing force 'that makes an object move forwards and upwards.

ANDY TORBET:'Mako sharks create this by flexing their super strong muscles 'to make wave like movements from the top of their body to their tail.

ANDY TORBET:'This movement pushes them through the water at top speed 'If I'm going to take on this serious swimmer, 'I need to find the best tech tools 'to create the ultimate pushing force for speed and height.

ANDY TORBET:'My next stop is Italy, and I'm heading to the town of Padua,' 'where things are about to get very wet.'

ANDY TORBET:I've come to Y-40, the world's deepest swimming pool, to test out some top tech.

ANDY TORBET:'I'm trying out the monofin, 'the X2, with it's wrist-mounted thrusters, 'and the Seabob, an underwater powered scooter. 'All three tech increases my speed underwater 'but I'm still nowhere near the 46mph the mako can reach.

ANDY TORBET:'And what about the breach? It's time to head to the surface. 'Can I get anywhere near the mako's 9 metres?

ANDY TORBET:'Sadly not.' As good as that technology is, it is no match for the power and speed of the mako shark.

ANDY TORBET:'On my trek to find the right tech, I'm in California again.' I've had an idea. I'm going to try using that. 'This is the ZR Hoverboard.

ANDY TORBET:'The board is designed to let you ride at high speeds 'and surf above the water. 'Will this tech give me the breach height I'm looking for?

ANDY TORBET:'And I'm in safe hands with Paul, one of the USA's best hoverboarders.'

The hoverboard hooks up to the jet-ski, and then the water's redirected from the jet-ski to the hoverboard through a hose.

ANDY TORBET:'The mako shark, like most fish, 'balances and breaks using it's pectoral fins. 'They're on either side of the body behind the gills.

ANDY TORBET:'If only I had some.

ANDY TORBET:'The more attempts I have, the better I get, 'and it's not long until I'm reaching heights 'near to that of the mako's breach.'

Woo! Mako shark!

ANDY TORBET:'Question is can I reach the 9 metre mark? 'Here goes.

ANDY TORBET:'Not this time.' That big, powerful jet of water at the back would propel me right out up in the air, but unfortunately it's just not designed to go underwater. I just couldn't match the mako shark.

ANDY TORBET:'And that's where the mako shark really trumps me. 'It's nose, fins and tail are engineered for underwater swimming. 'And it's body is designed to be a perfect torpedo shape 'to move at speed through the water. 'So I need a combination of all the tech I've tested.

ANDY TORBET:'And here is the answer. 'The Seabreacher, 'a mashup between a speedboat and a submarine. 'And it looks more than capable of matching the mako.'

ANDY TORBET:So Anthony.

ANTHONY:Yes sir?

ANDY TORBET:How fast can this thing go?

ANTHONY:It can do about 60mph.

ANDY TORBET:Can you show me?

ANTHONY:Yes sir I can.

ANDY TORBET:The speed and acceleration of this thing is incredible. It's like being in a jet fighter.

ANDY TORBET:'This is really fun, 'and it's given me an idea of what it's like to be a powerful mako 'cutting through the water.'

ANDY TORBET:So that's what it can do on the surface, can it actually go underwater a little bit as well?

ANTHONY:Oh yeah.

ANDY TORBET:'And with its underwater top speed of 40mph, 'it's clear the Seabreacher can match the mako on the power front.

ANTHONY:Do you want to breach a little?

ANDY TORBET:Yeah let's try a breach.

ANDY TORBET:'So can the Seabreacher take me totally mako?

ANDY TORBET:'This shark inspired Seabreacher 'is as close as I can get to matching the mako's power. 'But it can't get me to breach as high 'or swim as deep as the mighty mako.'

ANDY TORBET:Well you can't win them all, but it just goes to show how incredible the speed and the power of the mako shark is, because I couldn't come close even with all that cutting edge technology.

ANDY TORBET:So this one's a fail but a lot of fun trying. And remember, you can catch more Beyond Bionic on BBC Teach. I'll see you next time.