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More Than 90 Million In 15 U.S. States Under Heat Alert; GOP Hopefuls Court Iowa Evangelicals As Trump Alternative; Pennsylvania Police Release New Video OF Escapee; Putin Proposes New Wagner Boss; Europe Swelters under Heat Wave; India Reaches For the Moon; Women At Wimbledon. Aired 5-6a ET
Aired July 15, 2023 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world, I am Kim Brunhuber.
Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, an intense heat wave is scorching much of the U.S. this weekend with some temperatures topping 110 degrees.
This as parts of Europe bake under their own heat wave. We go to Rome for the latest. Plus.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right here is a demon that walks among us, a predator that ruined families.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Law enforcement officials in New York announce a breakthrough in unsolved decades-old murder cases. Details on the suspect and how police found him. And --
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Three, two, one, zero.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): India seeks to join one of the most exclusive clubs on the planet, with a new race to the moon.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.
BRUNHUBER: We begin this hour with an already dangerous weeks-long heat wave in the U.S. that is getting worse this weekend as the heat dome intensifies and reaches peak strength over parts of the Western United States; 85 million Americans are under heat alerts as the heat dome expanded into California, which is now experiencing its first extreme heat wave of the year.
It has already been dangerously hot for weeks in Texas, Florida and Arizona. Phoenix is in the middle of a likely record-breaking streak, consecutive 110-degree days. Experts say the intense heat is a silent killer.
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DAVID HONDULA, DIRECTOR, OFFICE OF HEAT RESPONSE: Unfortunately, in our region and many thousands more all across the United States, heat is fatal. It is something that the public needs to take seriously and it can impact everybody. Nobody is immune.
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BRUNHUBER: The heat will be so intense that the forecasters are warning residents in Las Vegas to avoid the outdoors between 9 am and 6 pm. It will challenge the all-time high temperature of 117 degrees on Sunday.
Forecasters for the National Weather Service told CNN that even the hottest place on Earth, Death Valley, could reach rare highs of 130 degrees possible on Sunday. This happened only a handful of times, one of them the all-time global record high temperature of 134 degrees.
CNN has reporters all across this developing story. Ed Lavandera is in Dallas, Texas, with a look at how people are beating the heat across the U.S. Barbie Nadeau is in Rome, with the heat wave across Europe.
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BRUNHUBER: It's still not known if or when special counsel Jack Smith might bring additional criminal charges against Donald Trump for efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss.
But we do know the various investigations are still ongoing and still gathering testimony, especially from key state election officials. CNN's Paula Reid has the latest.
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PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: CNN has learned that the secretaries of state in Pennsylvania and New Mexico have spoken with investigators in the special counsel's probe into efforts to overturn the 2020 election.
Now the secretary of state in Pennsylvania was asked about his time as the city commissioner in Philadelphia and specifically asked about the impact of misinformation, about widespread voter fraud, what impact it had on the election and election workers.
That is notable because other officials have also been asked in other states about the impact of misinformation on election workers and the threats that they were facing. Pennsylvania and New Mexico are two of the seven states where we know the former president and his allies were really focused on trying to upend Biden's victory.
And it appears that, in recent months, the special counsel has really zeroed in on the efforts. The special counsel appears to be in the final phase of its investigation. But we know they are still gathering evidence, still talking to witnesses.
So at this point it is unclear when they will make any final charging decision -- Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.
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BRUNHUBER: In Georgia, Donald Trump is seeking a court order to, essentially, neutralize the investigation into his conduct in the state after the 2020 election. His lawyers asked Fulton County superior court and the state's supreme court to toss out evidence gathered by a special grand jury and to disqualify Fulton County DA Fani Willis, who is leading the investigation.
The Georgia grand jury has heard testimony from 75 witnesses, including Trump advisers, White House aides and state officials. They've indicated that final charging decisions could come as soon as next month.
And Trump skipped Iowa's Family Leadership Summit led by an influential Christian conservative but plenty of other Republican presidential contenders attended, looking for a chance to position themselves as a viable alternative to the former president. CNN's Kristen Holmes has more.
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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For many 2024 Republican hopefuls, there was only one place to be Friday.
ASA HUTCHINSON (R-AR), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is Iowa.
PENCE: Historic day in Iowa.
HOLMES: Sitting down with Tucker Carlson, aiming to woo evangelical voters in the critical early voting state at the Family Leadership Summit.
SEN. TIM SCOTT (R-SC), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Isn't it good to be in a nation where you are free to praise the Lord?
HOLMES: And hoping to seize on the notable absence of primary front runner Donald Trump.
PENCE: I think it's unfortunate that the former president has now missed two significant events here in Iowa.
HUTCHINSON: There are some candidates who chose not to appear here today. Some people didn't want to be interviewed by Tucker Carlson, others believe maybe their policies are not in sync with Iowa evangelical community. HOLMES: Trump skipped the event run by influential Christian conservative Bob Vander Plaats who said it's time to move on from the former president.
BOB VANDER PLAATS, PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE FAMILY LEADER: I think the former president has 20 to 30 percent self-inflicted ceiling.
HOLMES: Trump instead will appear as the keynote speaker at a GOP event Saturday in Florida.
A Trump spokesperson blamed a scheduling conflict, while an adviser said Trump didn't need to participate in these group gatherings because of the former president's front runner status.
But the decision came just days after Trump ruffled feathers in the state, lashing out on social media at Republican Governor Kim Reynolds who is popular among Iowa conservatives for her decision not to endorse in the primary.
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HOLMES (voice-over): Trump advisers telling CNN they perceived Reynolds to be favoring Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, appearing alongside him and his wife at a number of campaign events. The Hawkeye State is seen as crucial for several GOP hopefuls.
GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Hello, Iowa. It is great to be back.
HOLMES: To give them momentum heading into the primary season. And some, like former Vice President Mike Pence, have gone all in on Iowa.
PENCE: Karen and I are absolutely determined to travel to every corner of this state, every single pizza ranch in this state, and let people hear our hearts and learn about us.
HOLMES: While this might seem like a cavalier approach to this critical state of Iowa, I talked to a number of Trump advisers, who say they are taking the state very seriously. They're not taking anything for granted. They have a huge ground game and have already organized and have pledged more than in 2016 and 2020.
But of course, the question is how exactly attacking the state's very popular Republican governor squares away with all of the work they are trying to do on the ground -- Kristen Holmes, CNN, West Palm Beach, Florida.
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BRUNHUBER: Still ahead, a major break in a cold case murder mystery. Police in New York have arrested a suspected serial killer more than a decade after remains of several victims were found on a beach.
Also, Pennsylvania police released new footage of the manhunt for an escaped inmate believed to be armed and dangerous.
Plus, a political claim by Russia's president, who apparently slipped Wagner's boss from his officers. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Police in New York believe they have cracked the cold case of a serial killer who preyed on women more than a decade ago. A 59 year old man has been charged with the murders of three women, who became known as the Gilgo Four and he soon could be charged with murdering a fourth victim.
CNN's Miguel Marquez explains how police tracked down the alleged killer.
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RAYMOND TIERNEY, DISTRICT ATTORNEY, SUFFOLK COUNTY, NEW YORK: I'm standing here with my law enforcement partners in the Gilgo Taskforce to announce the indictment of defendant, Rex Andrew Heuermann.
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Sex workers found tied up, their bodies wrapped in camouflage burlap dumped near Gilgo Beach on New York's Long Island.
TIERNEY: When I took office in January 2022, I made Gilgo a priority.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): The Gilgo Beach murders traumatized and captivated Long Island just east of New York City for more than a decade. Now the suspect as unthinkable as the murders themselves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a shock. Like I said, I lived 29 years here. I mean, I've seen some things but this is --
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Rex Heuermann, 59, charged with three murders. Today, the investigation continuing, he faces a possible fourth murder charge.
Investigators say they identified Heuermann using DNA from the bodies of the victims and from witness descriptions of him and the car he drove.
Investigators obtained hundreds of search warrants and subpoenas linking Heuermann to temporary burner phones and fake email accounts. Investigators allege he used them to communicate with his victims, taunt the family of one of them in search for information related to the investigation into the long unsolved murders.
MAJOR STEPHEN UDICE, NEW YORK STATE TROOP COMMANDER: We recognize that these crimes may have happened years ago but that pain continues.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Investigators' biggest break came when they were surveilling Heuermann at his Midtown Manhattan office. He was eating pizza and discarded in a public trash can. DNA from the pizza crust say investigators linked Heuermann to the murders.
Heuermann has been charged with the murders of Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Lynn Costello and Megan Waterman, all sex workers, all in their 20s. The investigation is continuing and he has also been named as a suspect in the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes.
In all, there were 11 bodies found in and around Gilgo Beach, only three and possibly a fourth now linked to one alleged killer so far.
Investigators say they made the arrest now because they feared Heuermann could strike again.
TIERNEY: One of the reasons why we had to take this case down was we learned that the defendant was using these alternate identities and these alternate instruments to continue to patronize sex workers.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): Rex Heuermann has pled not guilty and insists through his lawyer that he is innocent. He is an unlikely suspect, a husband, father of two, an architect working in Manhattan, dealing with arcane building codes.
In February 2022, he was even interviewed about his job for a YouTube show.
REX HEUERMANN, GILGO BEACH MURDER SUSPECT: Rex Heuermann, I am an architect. I'm an architectural consultant. I'm a troubleshooter, born and raised on Long Island.
MARQUEZ (voice-over): As for the several other victims found near Gilgo Beach, many of their family members hope this will lead to answers about their loved ones: Were they victims as well?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm hopeful for the future and I'm hopeful that a connection is made.
MARQUEZ: So what is happening outside the home of Rex Heuermann, this has been the case all day long; there is a massive number of police here. They've been searching through the home. And it doesn't look like they're going anywhere anytime soon.
Investigators also say he became increasingly brazen throughout all of this. He had burner phones or he is actually searching about the investigation itself. And at one point they say he contacted the relative of one of his victims, Melissa Barthelemy, telling that person that he had killed and sexually assaulted their relative.
Heuermann is due in court again on August 1st. Back to you.
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BRUNHUBER: Pennsylvania police have released new video footage of an escaped inmate taken in the last couple of days as a manhunt continues. Michael Burham has been on the run for about a week, after escaping. Authorities say he has survivalist skills and is considered armed and
dangerous.
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BRUNHUBER: They say they found a bag Burham almost certainly used.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This particular bag was wrapped in a dark colored tarp and partially concealed under a log. This was found in the general area of the city of Warren, outside of the city in a wooded area but not far.
It contained clothing, some food and some other materials that someone might need if they were trying to exist in the woods.
QUESTION: A weapon?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not in this particular bag.
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BRUNHUBER: Authorities released this doorbell video taken in the city of Warren, showing Burham walking past property toward the woods.
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BRUNHUBER: We are getting word of new Russian drone strikes on the city of Zaporizhzhya. Ukraine says the city was hit overnight, damaging residential buildings and an industrial facility. One person was wounded. Another says that Zelenskyy says Moscow is going all out to stop Ukraine's counteroffensive. Here he is.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Our full focus is on the front line. We must all understand very clearly, as clearly as possible, that the Russian forces on our southern and eastern lands are investing everything they can to stop our warriors.
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BRUNHUBER: Meanwhile, a top Ukrainian presidential aide is hoping more Russian targets will soon be within Kyiv's striking distance. He says the U.S. is very close to making a decision about sending its ATACMS missiles to Ukraine.
Those missiles have a range of up to 190, miles or 300 kilometers, which would allow for strikes deeper behind the front lines.
Now despite increased Russian shelling along Ukraine's northeastern frontier, President Zelenskyy says that he has seen no indication an incursion is likely from that direction. But Ukraine is keeping a watchful eye on that pro-Russian neighbor, Belarus. Wagner mercenaries are reported to be there encamped. CNN's Alex Marquardt has the latest.
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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): New video on Belarusian state TV claiming to show Wagner mercenaries in southern Belarus training local troops. Neighboring Belarus was where Wagner leader Yevgeny Prigozhin was supposed to be exiled to after his aborted insurrection in Russia, throwing his fate and that of Wagner's into doubt.
In a new interview released today, Putin proclaimed, we do not have a law for private military organizations. It simply does not exist. The group exists but legally, it does not exist.
Putin is referencing Russia's law against mercenary groups but also stating a new reality. Wagner, as it has existed in Ukraine as a fighting force, could be done.
And Prigozhin, once called Putin's chef, may be split from his men.
JOHN KIRBY, NSC SPOKESMAN: We really don't know what the future of Wagner is going to be here, whether it's in Ukraine or anywhere else around the world. We know that they are still conducting malicious activities, particularly in Africa.
MARQUARDT: After the Wagner mutiny came to a sudden halt on June 24th, Putin accused the mercenaries of being traitors. Then, just five days later. Putin said in the interview he invited 35 Wagner commanders, including Prigozhin to the Kremlin and offered them a chance to repent.
I showed them possible options for their further service, Putin said, including the use of their combat experience. Putin offered the Wagner leaders the chance to continue fighting in the Russian army, under their commander, nicknamed Sedoi or gray hair. Andrei Troshev, a retired colonel and founding member of Wagner. Troshev is sanctioned by the E.U. and U.K. He's fought in Afghanistan, Chechnya and Syria, earning Russia's highest military honors.
The men, Putin said, nodded affirmatively but Prigozhin sitting in the front said after listening, no, the guys do not agree with this decision.
MARQUARDT: So what happened after Prigozhin apparently openly disagreed with Putin?
That we don't know. Prigozhin may be out of Ukraine but he certainly wants to hold on to his business interests both in Africa and in the Middle East.
As for what happened to his men, the Pentagon says the bulk of them are back here in Ukraine in Russian-occupied areas, back in their barracks but the Defense Department says they are no longer taking part in military operations here in Ukraine -- Alex Marquardt, CNN, Dnipro, Ukraine.
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BRUNHUBER: Scott McLean is monitoring the latest developments in Ukraine in joined us now from London.
Scott, what more are we learning about the possible new head of Wagner?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So Andrey Troshev, Kim, what we know about him largely comes from documents published in December 2021 by the E.U. and France.
These are sanction documents. So we know that Troshev is 70 years old. He was born in Leningrad in the former Soviet Union, what is now St. Petersburg. He is a retired Russian colonel, who goes by the call sign "Sedoy" or "gray hair." He does have gray hair.
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MCLEAN: He is a founding member and executive director of the Wagner Group and, as Alex Marquardt explained, given metals for service in Afghanistan in the 1980s and the conflict in Chechnya in the 2000s as well.
And he was also involved in fighting in Syria, particularly in Deir ez-Zor, the city in Eastern Syria, which was held by ISIS for years. Russia has been credited, at least in part, with helping to rid the city of ISIS.
But Wagner fighters there, particularly were also accused of murder and torture. Beyond that, frankly, there are a lot of questions that we do not know about this man and what direction he might take this group in -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right and, then, Scott, an interesting decision being made in Ukraine which is lucky connected to the war about medical cannabis. Take us through that.
MCLEAN: So there have been efforts in the past to legalize medical marijuana, medical cannabis in Ukraine. They have tried and failed to do that. The most recent was two years ago.
But now, the house majority leader in the Ukrainian parliament says that, look, lawmakers are simply acknowledging the new realities of war and the fact that you have so many injured soldiers who may be able to benefit from this.
They were part of this group that has really been pushing for this. One of them lost his leg after he was hit by a mine on the southern front line and he says, look, traditional painkillers have numbed the pain but have not completely erased it. They also come with a whole bunch of side effects.
So someone like him is looking for other options. This is past the first reading in the Ukrainian parliament, it still needs to be voted on and passed one more time before it becomes law. But lawmakers are already saying that, look, this could affect some 6
million people, not just wounded soldiers but also soldiers with PTSD and, of course, civilians as well with serious illnesses like cancer, for instance, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: So many people there need whatever help they can get. Scott McLean in London, thank you so much.
Millions of Americans are sweltering under heat alerts and it is likely to get even hotter in some places this weekend. More details in a moment.
Plus, parts of southern Europe are also suffering from a dangerous heat wave and there is no end in sight. We will have a live report from Rome after the break, stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world. I am Kim Brunhuber and this is CNN NEWSROOM.
I want to get back to one of our top stories, an already dangerous weeks-long heat wave only worsen this weekend as the heat dome intensifies and reaches peak strength over parts of the western United States.
Tens of millions of people are under heat alerts as it expanded to places like California, which now has its first extreme heat wave of the year. It has already been dangerously hot for weeks in Texas, Florida and Arizona, where Phoenix is in the middle of a likely record breaking streak of consecutive 110 degree days.
Even at 2:30 in the morning in Phoenix, it is 100 degrees there. Ed Lavandera has more on how people in Texas are coping with a heat wave.
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ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): More than 90 million people across the country are feeling the suffocation of an extreme heat wave. Widespread temperatures well over 100 degrees and heat index temperatures topping 110 degrees in many places. The heat unrelenting, like the popping sound off pickleball on this Dallas courts and at least one player looking for an escape.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE : I'm getting out of town. I won't be back until August. It's because of the heat. I mean, Minnesota is a place to be right now. So I'm going up there.
LAVANDERA: The American Southwest has seen 34 straight days of heat alerts and while some might dismiss this as just another summer, the author of the book "The Heat Will Kill You First" warns people underestimate the dangerous heat.
JEFF GOODELL, AUTHOR, "THE HEAT WILL KILL YOU FIRST": What I have learned is that we radically must understand the risks of extreme heat. We think that heat means a good day to go to the pull or go to the beach. We don't understand how dangerous it is.
LAVANDERA: When elephants at the Dallas Zoo need relief to fight for the heat wave, it is a sign of the humans need to be aware as well. The zoo is shifting its hours to open earlier and monitoring animals not accustomed to these extreme temperatures.
SAM SAFRANEK, DALLAS ZOOLOGIST: Mostly being lethargic is a good indicator of whether they are too hot. Hosing them down, most animals do appreciate a good host. Down
LAVANDERA: ERCAT, the agency managing the Texas power grid says the state set an unofficial record for peak energy used on Thursday but also says the grid has enough power to handle the increased demand.
But for millions of people who work outside, it's impossible to escape the punishing heat.
For package delivery drivers --
SHEA SQUALLS, UPS DRIVER: You have to prepare yourself each and every
day. That mission starts at home. You start -- as soon as you wake up, you start hydrating.
LAVANDERA: And farm workers and landscaping crews out in the field.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If it gets very hot, we'll actually pull our crews and not allow them to work that day.
LAVANDERA: And for children like Kameron Johnson trying to enjoy summer vacation -- well, this is no fun.
KAMERON JOHNSON, DALLAS, TEXAS: It feels like if hot sauce could be felt without you having to taste and it got poured on my back.
LAVANDERA: We find ourselves in the scorching misery of summer heat and there is no relief in sight. This weekend it is especially dire in the southwest part of the United States, where temperatures and heat indexes are expected to reach over 110 degrees in many places.
In Death Valley, California, it could be a stunning 130 degrees. That temperature has only been reached five times since records have been kept there in more than 110 years -- Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas, Texas.
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BRUNHUBER: It's not just the U.S.; Europe is also experiencing a dangerous heat wave. Now at the end of the week, it was actually the coolest for many in over a week, with temperatures soaring in Athens, where the Acropolis was closed for a while.
In other parts of Europe, it is already dangerously hot. And the steady rise in temperature begins this weekend for countries like Spain and Italy.
Now in Italy, health officials have issued an extreme health risk warning for 15 cities, including Rome and Florence. CNN's Barbie Nadeau joins us live from Rome.
Barbie, the Mediterranean is no stranger to summer heat. But this is unusual.
How are folks coping there?
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, they are supposed to be inside.
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NADEAU: It's approaching midday and there are shocking number of tourists out here. We are at Piazza del Popolo in Rome and there are tourists all over because this is tourist season.
People planned these trips for a long time in advance and there's no way that they're going to cancel them just because it is going to be hot. But it is dangerous and city officials are urging people to go inside museums and churches and things like that during the hottest part of the day and stay hydrated.
There are 4,000 water fountains in Rome that people can just use to cool off or to fill up their water bottles. But even that is not going to be enough, Kim. It is hot and it's just going to get hotter.
BRUNHUBER: I can see from the pictures, there lots of umbrellas, fans. But this is not just affecting Italy. Spain as well and Greece too?
NADEAU: That is absolutely right. Spain is seeing high temperatures in places it has never seen before. Greece closing the Acropolis. It is unbelievable. We have heard from this Norwegian tourist from the north of Europe. They are not used to these temperatures. Let's listen to what they had to say.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The heat is very intense and there is a lot of people. Hopefully no one will suffer any less. But it was very intense. So I think it will be dangerous.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The heat is hard but we will push through it and we don't know if we'll ever be back. So we have to take advantage of the day; stay hydrated, wear a hat and take breaks where you can.
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NADEAU: And, you know, stay hydrated, wear a hat, fan, umbrella, it doesn't do much for the humidity. The humidity is so, so heavy. It is hard to find any relief, even in the shade, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: People are going to have to adjust because this, as we keep saying, it is becoming the new normal. Barbie Nadeau in Rome, thank you so much.
A different kind of extreme weather in South Korea where at least 21 people have died amid heavy rain flooding and landslides.
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BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Look at this dramatic video, the site of a mountain just falls to the ground there. Two people died on Friday when their building collapsed in a landslide.
And then here, families rescued from the rising waters, thousands more having to evacuate their homes and seek temporary shelters; 8,300 homes and businesses are without power.
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BRUNHUBER: Still ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, Marketa Vondrousova takes on Ons Jabeur as the pair battle for their maiden grand slam title in women's Wimbledon final. We will preview the matchup, plus.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (voice-over): Three, two, one, zero.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): India and other nations launching missions to space. We'll look at the new race to the moon, stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: India is embarking on an ambitious voyage to the moon. It has been only the fourth country to execute a controlled landing on the lunar service. That journey began Friday with a successful launch of its mission.
The Indian space research organization confirmed on Twitter Friday that the spaceship is in precise orbit and has begun its journey to the moon.
Meanwhile, Chinese officials week unveiling new details about their plans for a manned lunar mission as China becomes the only second nation to put citizens on the moon. This comes on the heels of other nations and private companies trying to launch missions to the moon, each with their own objectives and challenges.
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BRUNHUBER: Carla Filotico is a partner and managing director of SpaceTec Partners, a consulting firm and she is in London.
Thank you so much for being here with us.
So first, what do you make of India's latest moon shot?
I guess the launch was the easy part, right?
CARLA FILOTICO, PARTNER AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, SPACETEC PARTNERS: Yes, absolutely. So now is the launch. And then in two or three weeks it will reach lunar orbit. And then it will include automatically deploy the lander on the face of the moon.
And therefore the rover will start its journey in the daytime of the moon, which in Earth time is 14 days to explore the lunar surface. So indeed, it is important for the mission.
BRUNHUBER: China, as I mentioned as well planning a planned mission to the moon. So India and China are regional rivals.
Is this is an Asian version of the Cold War space race?
FILOTICO: Yes, indeed space is becoming more and important dimension for the geopolitical space powers and activities around the world. It is also an important dimension for diplomacy more and more.
We have seen leaders' agreements, signed also by India and the discussions in the U.S. So India has put in itself in the global scene. And it is important for the Indian economy as well, as you can imagine.
So space investments are actually an important benefit in our technologies. For example, transportation, communication or, indeed, as we said, health care.
BRUNHUBER: On the front end, I mean these lunar explorations, they cost a fortune. And here in the U.S. we have seen that all being outsourced to private companies. It seems more unusual to have these countries funding this.
What is the upside here besides the spinoffs?
Why are countries still doing this and funding it themselves?
FILOTICO: Yes, space in the past decades used transformation. So now it is more economical to produce these space systems. Space is a national interest for different reasons. That I explained before.
For example, the advancement, the national security or national pride, a tool to increase interests, to pursue STEM careers. And, most importantly, to develop technological advancement for their own national industry.
Having said that, collaboration with private players is important and there is this trend about commercializing space activities. Let's face it, even SpaceX developed a huge investment of the government.
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FILOTICO: On another note, in India, it is a very cost-effective manner. As you are aware, this mission is costing about $75 million. But of course, this is after the other two attempts from the Indians to land on the moon.
And but this also went in the order of hundreds millions and not billions. So it is becoming more cost-effective. But in terms of international cooperation, this is a possibility.
BRUNHUBER: You talked about the commercial benefits. The moon holds hundreds of billions of dollars worth of untapped resources, as president Donald Trump signed an executive order allowing any American citizen or company to extract and use resources in space.
So now the outer space treaty means no nation can own the moon. But countries would have the right to mine it, should they be able to work out the logistics. Obviously we are a long way off from doing that.
But how big of an incentive is this?
FILOTICO: Well, this is an incentive, in two ways. One, if it is true that we are really, as a global community, willing to explore a life outside of the Earth, so exploring resources in space would be a first step toward the most sustainable living in space.
So for example, this mission would go to see if there is water on the moon. So extracting water on the moon would be useful, not only for drinking but to produce oxygen for food and transportation.
As you said, the variable. So this is important in two ways. We have a potential discovery of minerals and, importantly, the discovery of water and other resources that can be used for human activities in space.
BRUNHUBER: It is all very exciting and interesting to follow along with this latest mission. Carla Filotico, thank you for joining us, we appreciate it.
FILOTICO: Thank you very much.
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BRUNHUBER: Film and television actors have now joined writers on the picket lines. The SAG-AFTRA union voted to go on strike late Thursday. Union members have many of the same issues that pushed writers to go on strike in early May.
Concerns about basic pay and residuals, especially streaming residuals, along with the desired set limits on the use of artificial intelligence to copy actors' bodies or voices. The studios say they offered a historic deal, including the largest minimum pay increase in more than three decades.
Still ahead, the men's final at Wimbledon is set. The top player in the world, Carlos Alcaraz versus the best, ever Novak Djokovic. Carolyn Manno joins us live to break down Wimbledon. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: We are in for one historic men's final on Sunday at Wimbledon. Novak Djokovic versus Carlos Alcaraz, looking for the calendar grand slam. CNN's Carolyn Manno joins us from New York with more.
Carolyn, world number one versus the number two, what can we expect in Sunday's match?
CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, this is a matchup that everybody wanted to see. This is what they came for in a final like this to see the top player in the world, in Carlos Alcaraz, versus the best ever, in Djokovic. Hopefully it will deliver.
The Serbian superstar now one win away from a record-tying eighth Wimbledon title and a fifth straight after beating Jannik Sinner in straight sets. He is on such a dominant run. Novak has not lost a match in Centre Court in a decade and he has won 34 matches in a row at the All England Club.
So that just tells you what we could be in store for. I mean, Novak has only lost one Wimbledon final that he has reached, period. That was 10 years ago, when he was beaten by Andy Murray. At 36 years old, he could become the oldest Wimbledon champion. But age to him is really just a number.
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NOVAK DJOKOVIC, WIMBLEDON CHAMPION: I feel, 36 is the new 26, I guess. It feels good. And I just feel a lot of motivation and I'm inspired to play the tennis that I truly love.
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MANNO: Djokovic will face Carlos Alcaraz who took care of business with a dominant straight sets victory over Daniil Medvedev that took less than 2 hours. At age 20, the Spaniard becomes the fourth youngest men's finalist in history and hopes to add to his grand slam hall, after winning the U.S. Open last year.
This will be the second time in a major that Djokovic and Alcaraz square off. Last month, Djokovic beat him in the French Open semifinals.
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CARLOS ALCARAZ, TENNIS PRO: Well, it gives you extra motivation. I think it is more special to play the finals against the legend. I always say, that if you want to be the best, you have to beat the best. And Novak is one of them. And so it will be great.
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MANNO: Meantime, the women's title will be decided in just a few hours now. Sixth seeded Ons Jabeur, was one set away from winning her first grand slam title last year at Wimbledon before losing to the eventual champion, Elena Rybakina.
And the Tunisian is really looking to become the first African Arab to win a major as well so that's extra motivation for Ons. She's going to face Marketa Vondrousova, who is the first unseeded woman to reach the final at the All England Club. She is 24 years old from the Czech Republic and described as what you might describe as a tattoo enthusiast with ink running down both of her arms.
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MANNO: She says that if she wins, her coach is going to get in on the permanent fine as well.
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ONS JABEUR, TENNIS PRO: I have a bet with my coach that if I win a grand slam he is going to get one. So I hope I win.
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MANNO: Back stateside now, the WNBA all-star weekend underway, getting started with Sabrina Ionescu's record setting performance in the 3- point contest. This was just incredible. The New York Liberty star took 20 shots in a row at one point, missing just twice to finish 37 out of a possible 40 points in the final round.
Take a good look at this, this is the highest total ever recorded in the contest. Steph Curry shares the men's record of 31 points, with Tyrese Haliburton. But Ionescu will play in her second career all-star game on Saturday. And she delighted everybody. I think that record is going to stand for quite some time. It was wonderful to see.
BRUNHUBER: Amazing shooting there. Thank you so much for that.
Well, the Powerball lottery jackpot is up for grabs in the U.S. today and it is gigantic at $875 million. It is the 3rd largest in the game's history. No one has won Powerball since April 19th.
And another lottery, the Mega Millions, was drawn last night. This jackpot was $560 million but there were no big winners so its next grand prize will be about $640 million .
Before we, go there it is something that you do not expect to see while you are driving. Take a look at this.
That green streak, that is a meteor entering the atmosphere. It lit up the night sky over parts of Mississippi and Louisiana Friday night. The American Meteorologist Society says that sightings were also in cities like Lake Charles and New Orleans. It would probably freak me out if I saw that while I was driving.
That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM, I'm Kim Brunhuber. You can follow me on Twitter at Kim Brunhuber. "CNN THIS MORNING" is next.
