CNN Student News - August 22, 2017

cnn 10

President Trump Discusses U.S. Military Strategy; Recent Navy- Related Events in the Pacific; A Japanese Company Plans to Clean Up Space Junk

Aired August 22, 2017 - 04:00:00 ET

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


CARL AZUZ, cnn 10 ANCHOR: A presidential speech concerning America`s longest war leads off today`s news on cnn 10. I`m Carl Azuz. Thank you for making us part of your day.

U.S. President Donald Trump made a primetime address last night. It was his first one of those since the address he gave to a joint session of Congress in February. The focus: his administration`s strategy concerning U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan.

The war there began in 2001 under U.S. President George W. Bush. At that time, Afghanistan was controlled by a militant group called the Taliban.

They refused a U.S. demand to hand over the terrorist responsible for the September 11th attacks against America. So, an international coalition, a group of countries led by the U.S. launched attacks on Taliban and terrorist targets.

The conflict continued into the presidency of Barack Obama. He initially promised a temporary surge, an increase in a number of U.S. troops there, as well as an end to the war by 2014. But two years after that, at the end of Mr. Obama`s presidency, more than 8,000 American troops were still there

and the Taliban remained a powerful force in the South Asian country.

Like his predecessor, Donald Trump initially criticized U.S. involvement in Afghanistan as expensive. And leading up to his presidential run, Mr. Trump said it wasn`t in America`s national interest. But after becoming president and discussing Afghanistan with his military advisors, Mr. Trump said that he took over a mess and was going to make it, quote, a lot less messy. He used his address last night to explain his strategy for how to do that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: A core pillar of our new strategy is a shift from a time-based approach to one based on conditions.

I`ve said it many times how counterproductive it is for the United States to announce in advance the dates we intend to begin or end military options.

We will not talk about numbers of troops or our plans for further military activities. Conditions on the ground, not arbitrary timetables, will guide our strategy from now on. America`s enemies must never know our plans, or believe they can wait us out. I will not say when we are going to attack,

but attack we will.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AZUZ (voice-over): Ten-second trivia:

Which of these ships was lost in the Pacific Ocean?

RMS Titanic, Queen Anne`s Revenge, USS Indianapolis or RMS Lusitania?

All of these ships sank in the Atlantic, except for the USS Indianapolis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUBTITLE: USS Indianapolis wreckage found.

Researchers have found wreckage of a U.S. warship that sank in the final days of World War II.

A crew lead by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen found the ship on the floor of the Philippine Sea.

It was 18,000 feet beneath the water`s surface.

The ship delivered parts of the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima.

The USS Indianapolis was hit by a Japanese torpedo on July 30, 1945.

Of the 1,196 sailors and Marines onboard, only 316 were rescued days later.

The ship remains property of the U.S. Navy, and the exact location is being kept confidential.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: A modern U.S. warship was involved in an incident Monday in the Pacific. The USS John S. McCain accidentally collided with an oil tanker east of Singapore.

The tanker had some damage to its bow, but no one onboard was hurt and there was no oil leak. But on the McCain, there was significant damage to the ship`s hull. There was flooding in some of its compartments and 10 American sailors were missing after the collision.

Now, the U.S. Navy is facing questions about its readiness. This is the fourth Pacific accident that a U.S. ship has been involved in this year.

Yesterday, the Navy ordered an unusual one-day pause in its operations, while officials look at leadership, training, procedures and equipment on American ships in the region.

The Navy, like the rest of the U.S. military, has been grappling with budget cuts in recent years. A Navy spokesman says America has enough ships and aircraft available to cover all current missions despite the recent accidents.

From sea to sky, the sun and moon put on a spectacular show across America yesterday, shrouding daylight in the spectacle of a satellite surreal shadow. Millions saw it.

But if you didn`t, you will not have to wait another 99 years for the next transcontinental total solar eclipse. The next one is only seven years away, in 2024. It`s scheduled to start in Mexico and stretch across the Central and Northeastern U.S. before passing over Eastern Canada.

Scientists expect that one to last longer, too, for those directly in its path.

If you`re the sort to support traveling to the stars, though, there`s a growing challenge in getting space craft into orbit and beyond. We`re talking trash.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REPORTER: The more we rocket into the heavens --

ANNOUNCER: Three, two, one -- liftoff!

REPORTER: -- the more junk and debris we live behind, making it more dangerous for our spaceships and our satellites to move around.

The good news, we can clean it up.

In the heart of Tokyo, just a few miles away from this park, on a quiet street, one company is trying to make space a little safer by making it a little cleaner.

Imagine space for a second. It looks something like this, right? Not quite.

According to space wizards like this guy -- hi, Tim -- this is more like it. A world surrounded by broken satellites, old rockets and spaceship fragments, and, well, just junk.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You wouldn`t believe there are thousands and thousands and thousands of pieces of space debris out there.

REPORTER: Over 170 million pieces, according to some estimates. Some are big. Others, small. Most are really small.

NAOKO YAMAZAKI, JAPANESE ASTRONAUT: The small one is like paint flecks.

REPORTER: But don`t like size fool you. In space, the smallest thing can have a catastrophic impact. Those flecks move an average of 40,000 kilometers an hour, and when they hit, they hit with a force of a hand grenade. Imagine that times 170 million.

Naoko Yamazaki, Japan`s second female astronaut, has seen the impact of this stuff firsthand.

YAMAZAKI: If the space debris in size is bigger than one centimeter --

REPORTER: Less than a dime.

YAMAZAKI: -- it will go through the structure. So, it is a risk.

REPORTER: That means dime sized debris can destroy a spaceship.

But junk isn`t just a problem for astronauts. It impacts everyone on earth, too. Intelligence gathering, electric grids, just look at the GPS on your phone.

That`s why Miki wants to make space cleaner.

MIKI ITO, PRESIDENT, ASTROSCALE (translated): If we don`t try to contribute to making outer space cleaner, it could be a threat to our
lives.

REPORTER: Step one, map the mess. Agencies like NASA track the big thrash. But right now, one is really looking at for the small pieces.

ITO (translated): These cannot be observed from Earth. So, we currently don`t know exactly where they are, or what sizes they might be.

REPORTER: While satellite one maps the small stuff, satellite two nicknamed ELSA-D will sweep up the big stuff.

ITO (translated): We are thinking of using magnets.

REPORTER: Really, just magnets?

Miki`s team will launch the satellite as close to the selective piece of junks as possible. Special cameras and sensors will get even closer and magnets will do the rest. Then, it will be all programmed to come back to the Earth where it will burn up on reentry. If all goes according to plan,

Astroscale will send the first demo sweeper up in 2019. And from there, companies can hire their own ELSA to sweep up whatever might be in their way.

Big international agencies like the European Space Agency have also started developing ideas to clean up space, but Astroscale is the world`s first private company giving it a try because it believes we will become even more dependent on space.

YAMAZAKI: Someday, you know, people will probably go to Mars or more farther place.

REPORTER: And let`s not forget, space tourism.

YAMAZAKI: But if you want to go farther beyond Earth, we have to clear that crowded area to minimize the risk.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

AZUZ: Our last segment today is making news for making moves. Once they are lined up and lighted up, these mechanical marvels stand up to get down in a synchronized shindig that strove to set a record.

It`s clear they were all in sync, though, of course, all they could really as a robot. Because they were almost 1,070 of them doing that, though, they set a Guinness world record for most robots dancing simultaneously.

OK, maybe they were just going through the motions, but once they got in gear, nothing interrupted their regularly scheduled programming. And you can see how well they were all connected to the dance circuit.

I`m Carl Azuz and that pulls the plug on cnn 10. We hope you`ll step back up tomorrow.

END