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CNN Live Today

9/11 Investigation; American Votes 2004; The Need For Speed; The Final Four

Aired March 29, 2004 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Iraqis protest a move by the U.S.-led coalition to stop the presses. Several thousand supporters of a Shiite cleric took to the streets yesterday. They were demonstrating against the closure of a newspaper accused of inciting violence against American troops. The U.S. civilian administrator shut down the paper for 60 days.
It is 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast and 8:00 a.m. on the West Coast. We're at CNN Center in Atlanta. Good morning, once again, I'm Daryn Kagan.

Up first this hour on CNN, standing by a principle and defending her position. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice is sticking by her refusal to testify in public before the commission investigating September 11.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux has the latest on the growing debate and Rice's vigorous defense.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn, the White House is searching for a compromise because, of course, this could be politically damaging. The White House, Dr. Rice saying that she would like to meet privately with the family members of the September 11 victims. That, perhaps, being arranged. But also, she is going to go again before the 9/11 Commission to answer questions privately as she did back in February.

Now back at that time, that was classified information. She was not under oath. There are no transcripts of that conversation. But there is a process that commission sources tell us that some of that information could become declassified later on down the road.

But the White House, as you know, Daryn, has a perception problem, that perception that they have something to hide. They are very much aware of this. Dr. Rice has appeared on numerous networks. The most recently "60 Minutes" to explain the administration's position.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Nothing would be better, from my point of view, than to be able to testify. I would really like to do that. But there's an important principle involved here, it is a long-standing principle that sitting national security advisers do not testify before the Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, Daryn, there are some congressional leaders, Republicans, this weekend who joined in the chorus of commission members, as well as those family members of 9/11 victims, calling for Dr. Rice to testify publicly and under oath. The White House, under quite a bit of pressure here, also what happened over the weekend to exasperate this is that Richard Clarke offered to make his e-mails, his memos, even congressional testimony, all of that, he said, put that out publicly. Declassify all of that.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as some congressional Republicans, said yes, we agree. Let's go ahead and make all of this public here, or at least most of it, so that they realize, the American people realize we have nothing to hide.

But one senior administration official said they didn't think that that was going to be likely, because they don't want to reveal what's called sources and methods that the U.S. has in terms of gathering information in fighting terrorism -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And meanwhile, Suzanne, the administration will probably -- would probably like nothing better than to see this -- the national conversation move on to another topic. And what's being done to try to make that happen?

MALVEAUX: Well certainly what you have here today is you have seven new NATO members that are going to officially join that organization. President Bush is going to talk about the fact that he appreciates their cooperation in the war on terror. We have also been told by sources that they are going to pull back somewhat, the White House is going to pull back in making its argument here. They certainly hope that they have answered the questions as best as they can. But we expect, of course, Daryn, that this will continue.

KAGAN: Suzanne Malveaux, we'll be tracking it from the White House.

Supporters and critics are speaking out about Condoleezza Rice's position. On CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," two senators sounded off about whether executive privilege should, in fact, keep Rice from testifying before the 9/11 Commission in public.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD SHELBY (R), ALABAMA: Dr. Rice has been very vigorous in stating her position that it is a separation of powers. And in her defense, Sandy Berger, when he was the national security adviser for President Clinton, refused to testify before the Intelligence Committee. I was chairman then. He did come up and we consulted with him on the same grounds that Dr. Rice is putting forth now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D), FLORIDA: I know the question. And I think if you went to court, Dr. Rice could sustain the argument that she shouldn't be required to testify. But 9/11 was an even more special event in the life of America than having an assistant to the president testify before an independent, non-congressional membership committee to tell the American people what she knew, when, and then what did she did about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Senator Graham says he doesn't believe that Rice has become a target. Senator Shelby says he doesn't think Rice has anything to hide.

There is word that Saddam Hussein has a big-time lawyer now. French attorney Jacques Verges says that he will be representing the deposed Iraqi leader. Verges has defended some of the world's most notorious figures, including Carlos the Jackal and Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie. Verges is already taking issue with the way that Saddam Hussein is being treated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUES VERGES, LAWYER (through translator): The Americans are saying he's a prisoner of war. But at the same time, he's not being treated like one. The Geneva Convention says that the dignity of a prisoner of war shouldn't be harmed, that he can only be interrogated about his identity. In this case, his dignity has been harmed and he is also being interrogated. And on top of that, the heads of the states that are enemies of Iraq are saying he is guilty. That is the case for Mr. Bush saying Saddam Hussein is guilty and he deserves to die. Is Mr. Bush a judge?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Verges says that 11 other attorneys from different nations will assist him in defending Saddam Hussein.

Health, taxes, money and even the scriptures figure into this morning's political news.

Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley has the latest from Washington.

Candy, good morning.

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn.

Senator John Kerry is beginning his day in Sacramento, California. His trip to the Golden State kicks off a 20-city fund raising tour designed to bring in $20 million. Before heading to the coast, Kerry managed to simultaneously quote scripture and annoy the Bush campaign during a Sunday church service in St. Louis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Scriptures say what does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? When we look at what's happening in America today, where are the works of compassion? Because it's also written, be doers of the word and not hearers only.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Kerry did not mention the Bush administration by name. A Bush campaign spokesman describes Kerry's words, though, as -- quote -- "beyond the bounds of acceptable discourse and a sad exploitation of scripture for a political attack."

The 60-year-old Kerry rarely passes up an opportunity to demonstrate he is in good physical shape. This hour-long bike ride yesterday is just a prelude to this week's expected release of the senator's updated medical records. Wednesday, Kerry will undergo minor surgery to repair a slight tear in his shoulder. He's expected to be off the campaign trail for four days.

Ralph Nader says he'll meet with Senator Kerry next month to talk about beating George Bush in the November election. There's been no response so far from the Kerry camp for such a meeting. The Independent presidential hopeful describes his candidacy as a second front to oust Mr. Bush from the White House. Nader says his campaign hurts Bush more than Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RALPH NADER (I), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm going to take more votes away from Bush than from Kerry. The members of the party out of power always come back into the fold, and that's the Democrats this year. But there are a lot of conservatives, liberal Republicans, Independents who are furious with George W. Bush.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Vice President Dick Cheney, this morning, warned about the dangers of what he called economic isolationism in a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He also promised a second Bush administration will work to keep taxes low. Cheney then launched into an attack on Senator Kerry's record on taxes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Senator Kerry's long record in Washington helps to clarify the stark choice before the American people in 2004. On economic policy, that choice is between a senator who would raise taxes and a president who has cut them. It is the difference between a senator who makes endless promises of new federal spending and a president who insists on spending discipline in Washington, D.C.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Richard Clarke's comments created a major controversy, but will his words affect the race for the White House? We'll gauge what Americans are saying when we roll out our new poll this afternoon.

Plus, does dieting alter more than your weight? Can it make an impact on the presidential election? Find out when I go "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:30 Eastern. And I'll see you then.

We now want to go back to Daryn in Atlanta -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right, Candy, we look forward to that.

What is the adventure of a lifetime worth? Up next, you're going to meet a guy who says it's worth $20 million of his own. The next space tourist is ahead.

Speaking of space, NASA has the need for speed, and it's a need that was met over the weekend. We will show you the record-breaking test flight.

And later, trouble at the Tyco trial. Is the whole thing about to end without a verdict? We are keeping a tap on what is happening from the courtroom in New York City.

CNN LIVE TODAY is back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

FRED KATAYAMA, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: CNN's LIVE TODAY continues after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The world's third space tourist heads to Russia this week to begin training for a trip to the International Space Station end of year (ph). Gregory Olsen is paying the Russian government $20 million for the adventure. Olsen made his fortune in fiber optics. And with that technical background, he plans to make this a working vacation. Olsen says he'll bring along his own batch of science experiments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREGORY OLSEN, SPACE TOURIST: I thought a long time about that, and I came to the conclusion that the value of this mission, which is scientific in nature, is not just an eight-day joy ride, but it's what happens afterwards, both for myself and the ability to be able to share this with a lot of people. We're going to publish the results in scientific journals. And what I really want to do is the educational part where I share this with young people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Olsen may succeed where 'NSync singer Lance Bass did not. Bass wanted to become a space tourist, but he could never come up with the cash. It's all about the cash. Speaking of space, NASA is celebrating a milestone in the history of flight. High over the Pacific this weekend, a test vehicle flew seven times the speed of sound. That is fast.

Technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg is here to tell us more about that.

Daniel, good morning.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, that's right.

It's going to be a while before any space tourists are flying aboard this vehicle. But it did break a record over the weekend on Saturday flying at mock seven or seven times the speed of sound. It's known as the X-43A.

And if we can go to the video here, we can show you what happened on Saturday afternoon out in California. This is a B-52, which took off from Edwards Air Force Base about 3:40 Eastern Time in the afternoon on Saturday. Now underneath its right wing, you can just barely see it here, is a Pegasus rocket, a modified Pegasus rocket. And on the front of that was the X-43A aircraft, which is only about 12 feet long.

So this B-52 took off from Edwards Air Force Base, reached about 40,000. At that point, it released -- we can see, there was a couple of F-18s flying along to get this video for NASA. And this Pegasus rocket, right here, and again, just on the very front of it is the actual X-43A aircraft.

Now once this B-52 reached about 40,000 feet or so that's when this Pegasus launched off the wing of the B-52. You can see it firing here in a second. It took off to try and get up to about 100,000 feet. Now at 100,000 feet is when it released the X-43A off the nose of it. And at that point, the X-43A had a very small window of time to get under its own power.

The key to this technology, the reason this is so interesting for NASA, and for any aviation experts, is that the X-43A is so small and it's not carrying any liquid oxygen tanks. Now the reason that's so crucial is because liquid oxygen is extremely heavy. And in this case, because it's so light, it can get up to a very high rate of speed.

Now what you can't see here, this is, again, going up to about 100,000 feet on Saturday. This is the Pegasus rocket. It gets very hard to see here. But once it gets up to that altitude, it releases the X-43A. And even without these liquid oxygen tanks, because it's going so fast, the Pegasus rocket gets up to about mach 5. It then starts to suck in oxygen, this oxygen that's needed to combine with the hydrogen and create this huge combustion and thrust out the back end to get it up to mach 7, which is what NASA said it did on Saturday.

This is animation showing what the X-43A aircraft looks like. It does look a lot like a flying surfboard. It's fairly small in design, very experimental at this point. The whole concept is fairly simple in terms of the physics. Go really fast, suck in this oxygen, combine it with a little bit of hydrogen and then create this enormous thrust.

And there you can see this animation. And this is where the liquid oxygen or the oxygen would be rushing in. But the execution of it is rather difficult. So NASA took a lot of precautions on Saturday to make sure this would work out. And it's sort of like a slingshot, Daryn, if you can imagine. It needs this B-52 and the rocket to get it up to that mach 5 speed and then release it to get up to mach 7.

NASA very excited, very happy. They said everything went according to plan. It did fail a few years ago. And in this case, they are calling it a great success. Might even test another one by the end of the year. And there's talk of possibly testing an aircraft/spacecraft of this type at mach 10 by the end of the year. So you know, mach 1, that used to be so fast. But (UNINTELLIGIBLE), yes, you know.


Aired March 29, 2004 - 11:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Iraqis protest a move by the U.S.-led coalition to stop the presses. Several thousand supporters of a Shiite cleric took to the streets yesterday. They were demonstrating against the closure of a newspaper accused of inciting violence against American troops. The U.S. civilian administrator shut down the paper for 60 days.
It is 11:00 a.m. on the East Coast and 8:00 a.m. on the West Coast. We're at CNN Center in Atlanta. Good morning, once again, I'm Daryn Kagan.

Up first this hour on CNN, standing by a principle and defending her position. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice is sticking by her refusal to testify in public before the commission investigating September 11.

Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux has the latest on the growing debate and Rice's vigorous defense.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Daryn, the White House is searching for a compromise because, of course, this could be politically damaging. The White House, Dr. Rice saying that she would like to meet privately with the family members of the September 11 victims. That, perhaps, being arranged. But also, she is going to go again before the 9/11 Commission to answer questions privately as she did back in February.

Now back at that time, that was classified information. She was not under oath. There are no transcripts of that conversation. But there is a process that commission sources tell us that some of that information could become declassified later on down the road.

But the White House, as you know, Daryn, has a perception problem, that perception that they have something to hide. They are very much aware of this. Dr. Rice has appeared on numerous networks. The most recently "60 Minutes" to explain the administration's position.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Nothing would be better, from my point of view, than to be able to testify. I would really like to do that. But there's an important principle involved here, it is a long-standing principle that sitting national security advisers do not testify before the Congress.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, Daryn, there are some congressional leaders, Republicans, this weekend who joined in the chorus of commission members, as well as those family members of 9/11 victims, calling for Dr. Rice to testify publicly and under oath. The White House, under quite a bit of pressure here, also what happened over the weekend to exasperate this is that Richard Clarke offered to make his e-mails, his memos, even congressional testimony, all of that, he said, put that out publicly. Declassify all of that.

Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as some congressional Republicans, said yes, we agree. Let's go ahead and make all of this public here, or at least most of it, so that they realize, the American people realize we have nothing to hide.

But one senior administration official said they didn't think that that was going to be likely, because they don't want to reveal what's called sources and methods that the U.S. has in terms of gathering information in fighting terrorism -- Daryn.

KAGAN: And meanwhile, Suzanne, the administration will probably -- would probably like nothing better than to see this -- the national conversation move on to another topic. And what's being done to try to make that happen?

MALVEAUX: Well certainly what you have here today is you have seven new NATO members that are going to officially join that organization. President Bush is going to talk about the fact that he appreciates their cooperation in the war on terror. We have also been told by sources that they are going to pull back somewhat, the White House is going to pull back in making its argument here. They certainly hope that they have answered the questions as best as they can. But we expect, of course, Daryn, that this will continue.

KAGAN: Suzanne Malveaux, we'll be tracking it from the White House.

Supporters and critics are speaking out about Condoleezza Rice's position. On CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING," two senators sounded off about whether executive privilege should, in fact, keep Rice from testifying before the 9/11 Commission in public.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD SHELBY (R), ALABAMA: Dr. Rice has been very vigorous in stating her position that it is a separation of powers. And in her defense, Sandy Berger, when he was the national security adviser for President Clinton, refused to testify before the Intelligence Committee. I was chairman then. He did come up and we consulted with him on the same grounds that Dr. Rice is putting forth now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. BOB GRAHAM (D), FLORIDA: I know the question. And I think if you went to court, Dr. Rice could sustain the argument that she shouldn't be required to testify. But 9/11 was an even more special event in the life of America than having an assistant to the president testify before an independent, non-congressional membership committee to tell the American people what she knew, when, and then what did she did about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Senator Graham says he doesn't believe that Rice has become a target. Senator Shelby says he doesn't think Rice has anything to hide.

There is word that Saddam Hussein has a big-time lawyer now. French attorney Jacques Verges says that he will be representing the deposed Iraqi leader. Verges has defended some of the world's most notorious figures, including Carlos the Jackal and Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie. Verges is already taking issue with the way that Saddam Hussein is being treated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUES VERGES, LAWYER (through translator): The Americans are saying he's a prisoner of war. But at the same time, he's not being treated like one. The Geneva Convention says that the dignity of a prisoner of war shouldn't be harmed, that he can only be interrogated about his identity. In this case, his dignity has been harmed and he is also being interrogated. And on top of that, the heads of the states that are enemies of Iraq are saying he is guilty. That is the case for Mr. Bush saying Saddam Hussein is guilty and he deserves to die. Is Mr. Bush a judge?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Verges says that 11 other attorneys from different nations will assist him in defending Saddam Hussein.

Health, taxes, money and even the scriptures figure into this morning's political news.

Our senior political correspondent Candy Crowley has the latest from Washington.

Candy, good morning.

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daryn.

Senator John Kerry is beginning his day in Sacramento, California. His trip to the Golden State kicks off a 20-city fund raising tour designed to bring in $20 million. Before heading to the coast, Kerry managed to simultaneously quote scripture and annoy the Bush campaign during a Sunday church service in St. Louis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. JOHN KERRY (D-MA), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Scriptures say what does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? When we look at what's happening in America today, where are the works of compassion? Because it's also written, be doers of the word and not hearers only.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Kerry did not mention the Bush administration by name. A Bush campaign spokesman describes Kerry's words, though, as -- quote -- "beyond the bounds of acceptable discourse and a sad exploitation of scripture for a political attack."

The 60-year-old Kerry rarely passes up an opportunity to demonstrate he is in good physical shape. This hour-long bike ride yesterday is just a prelude to this week's expected release of the senator's updated medical records. Wednesday, Kerry will undergo minor surgery to repair a slight tear in his shoulder. He's expected to be off the campaign trail for four days.

Ralph Nader says he'll meet with Senator Kerry next month to talk about beating George Bush in the November election. There's been no response so far from the Kerry camp for such a meeting. The Independent presidential hopeful describes his candidacy as a second front to oust Mr. Bush from the White House. Nader says his campaign hurts Bush more than Kerry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RALPH NADER (I), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm going to take more votes away from Bush than from Kerry. The members of the party out of power always come back into the fold, and that's the Democrats this year. But there are a lot of conservatives, liberal Republicans, Independents who are furious with George W. Bush.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Vice President Dick Cheney, this morning, warned about the dangers of what he called economic isolationism in a speech to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He also promised a second Bush administration will work to keep taxes low. Cheney then launched into an attack on Senator Kerry's record on taxes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Senator Kerry's long record in Washington helps to clarify the stark choice before the American people in 2004. On economic policy, that choice is between a senator who would raise taxes and a president who has cut them. It is the difference between a senator who makes endless promises of new federal spending and a president who insists on spending discipline in Washington, D.C.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CROWLEY: Richard Clarke's comments created a major controversy, but will his words affect the race for the White House? We'll gauge what Americans are saying when we roll out our new poll this afternoon.

Plus, does dieting alter more than your weight? Can it make an impact on the presidential election? Find out when I go "INSIDE POLITICS" at 3:30 Eastern. And I'll see you then.

We now want to go back to Daryn in Atlanta -- Daryn.

KAGAN: All right, Candy, we look forward to that.

What is the adventure of a lifetime worth? Up next, you're going to meet a guy who says it's worth $20 million of his own. The next space tourist is ahead.

Speaking of space, NASA has the need for speed, and it's a need that was met over the weekend. We will show you the record-breaking test flight.

And later, trouble at the Tyco trial. Is the whole thing about to end without a verdict? We are keeping a tap on what is happening from the courtroom in New York City.

CNN LIVE TODAY is back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET UPDATE)

FRED KATAYAMA, CNN FINANCIAL NEWS CORRESPONDENT: CNN's LIVE TODAY continues after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAGAN: The world's third space tourist heads to Russia this week to begin training for a trip to the International Space Station end of year (ph). Gregory Olsen is paying the Russian government $20 million for the adventure. Olsen made his fortune in fiber optics. And with that technical background, he plans to make this a working vacation. Olsen says he'll bring along his own batch of science experiments.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREGORY OLSEN, SPACE TOURIST: I thought a long time about that, and I came to the conclusion that the value of this mission, which is scientific in nature, is not just an eight-day joy ride, but it's what happens afterwards, both for myself and the ability to be able to share this with a lot of people. We're going to publish the results in scientific journals. And what I really want to do is the educational part where I share this with young people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: Olsen may succeed where 'NSync singer Lance Bass did not. Bass wanted to become a space tourist, but he could never come up with the cash. It's all about the cash. Speaking of space, NASA is celebrating a milestone in the history of flight. High over the Pacific this weekend, a test vehicle flew seven times the speed of sound. That is fast.

Technology correspondent Daniel Sieberg is here to tell us more about that.

Daniel, good morning.

DANIEL SIEBERG, CNN TECHNOLOGY CORRESPONDENT: Daryn, that's right.

It's going to be a while before any space tourists are flying aboard this vehicle. But it did break a record over the weekend on Saturday flying at mock seven or seven times the speed of sound. It's known as the X-43A.

And if we can go to the video here, we can show you what happened on Saturday afternoon out in California. This is a B-52, which took off from Edwards Air Force Base about 3:40 Eastern Time in the afternoon on Saturday. Now underneath its right wing, you can just barely see it here, is a Pegasus rocket, a modified Pegasus rocket. And on the front of that was the X-43A aircraft, which is only about 12 feet long.

So this B-52 took off from Edwards Air Force Base, reached about 40,000. At that point, it released -- we can see, there was a couple of F-18s flying along to get this video for NASA. And this Pegasus rocket, right here, and again, just on the very front of it is the actual X-43A aircraft.

Now once this B-52 reached about 40,000 feet or so that's when this Pegasus launched off the wing of the B-52. You can see it firing here in a second. It took off to try and get up to about 100,000 feet. Now at 100,000 feet is when it released the X-43A off the nose of it. And at that point, the X-43A had a very small window of time to get under its own power.

The key to this technology, the reason this is so interesting for NASA, and for any aviation experts, is that the X-43A is so small and it's not carrying any liquid oxygen tanks. Now the reason that's so crucial is because liquid oxygen is extremely heavy. And in this case, because it's so light, it can get up to a very high rate of speed.

Now what you can't see here, this is, again, going up to about 100,000 feet on Saturday. This is the Pegasus rocket. It gets very hard to see here. But once it gets up to that altitude, it releases the X-43A. And even without these liquid oxygen tanks, because it's going so fast, the Pegasus rocket gets up to about mach 5. It then starts to suck in oxygen, this oxygen that's needed to combine with the hydrogen and create this huge combustion and thrust out the back end to get it up to mach 7, which is what NASA said it did on Saturday.

This is animation showing what the X-43A aircraft looks like. It does look a lot like a flying surfboard. It's fairly small in design, very experimental at this point. The whole concept is fairly simple in terms of the physics. Go really fast, suck in this oxygen, combine it with a little bit of hydrogen and then create this enormous thrust.

And there you can see this animation. And this is where the liquid oxygen or the oxygen would be rushing in. But the execution of it is rather difficult. So NASA took a lot of precautions on Saturday to make sure this would work out. And it's sort of like a slingshot, Daryn, if you can imagine. It needs this B-52 and the rocket to get it up to that mach 5 speed and then release it to get up to mach 7.

NASA very excited, very happy. They said everything went according to plan. It did fail a few years ago. And in this case, they are calling it a great success. Might even test another one by the end of the year. And there's talk of possibly testing an aircraft/spacecraft of this type at mach 10 by the end of the year. So you know, mach 1, that used to be so fast. But (UNINTELLIGIBLE), yes, you know.