Royals Celebrate Big Day; What Will Last NASA Launch Mean for U.S.?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux. It is Friday, April 29th.</s>ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello from London. I'm Zain Verjee, just outside Buckingham Palace, where the royal wedding went very smoothly -- 1.5 million people were here in London to watch the procession along the streets. Two billion people around the world tuned in to watch the dress, the vows, and the carriage. We'll tell you what the atmosphere was like here. It was very electric -- Suzanne.</s>MALVEAUX: All right. Great. Today, our big stories cover both ends of the spectrum and what life brings to us. There is a party, a celebration of royal pageantry, and there is also a tragedy, the struggle, the human toil of hundreds of people trying to cope and move forward after those deadly tornadoes. Right now, President Obama is on the ground in Alabama. He arrived just moments ago to devastating scenes like this one. He and Governor Robert Bentley will survey the tornado damage in Tuscaloosa. Alabama bore the brunt of the terrifying storms that killed some 300 people across the South on Wednesday.</s>CHRIS WOZNIAK, TORNADO VICTIM: I opened the bathroom door thinking I'll leave like a hatchway out or something, and just like in "The Wizard of Oz," the whole front of the house just fly away. And then a Krispy Kreme truck flew right through the living room.</s>MALVEAUX: Tornadoes killed people across six southern states. Thirty-four of those deaths were in Tennessee.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything is gone. The whole thing that's left is just me and my wife and my dog.</s>MALVEAUX: The majority of the people killed in Tennessee were in the Chattanooga area.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was bright. You could see through the window, it was all bright, and then all of a sudden it went dark. He opened up the back door and he said, "Run!"</s>MALVEAUX: Fifteen people lost their lives in Georgia. The governor has declared a state of emergency for 16 counties.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's crazy. I mean, it's never been like this before. Their roof is on the other side of the street. Like, it's -- this is a brand-new house. It was just built, and their roof is on the other side of the street. It's absolutely horrific.</s>MALVEAUX: The National Weather Service says the tornado that hit Smithville, Mississippi, was an EF-5 on the tornado scale, with winds 205 miles an hour. Emergency workers have raised the state's death toll now to 33. They say without the repeated urgent tornado warnings from the weather service, even more people would have died. Space shuttle Endeavour is set to lift off on its final flight. That's happening this afternoon. President Obama and his family, they're going to be there, along with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, who is recovering from a gunshot wound to the head. Her husband, Navy Captain Mark Kelly, is Endeavour's commander. Now for the royal wedding. Kate Middleton married Prince William today. The couple, destined to be Britain's king and queen one day. The bride wore a Sarah Burton design from Alexander McQueen's fashion house. One commentator said the wedding dress, with its lace and traditional long train, was the perfect selection. Kate Middleton's father escorted the bride into Westminster Abbey, the cathedral where William's parents married 30 years ago. The archbishop of Canterbury recited the couple's wedding vows.</s>WILLIAMS: "I, William Arthur Philip Louis" --</s>PRINCE WILLIAM: I, William Arthur Philip Louis --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "take thee, Catherine Elizabeth" --</s>PRINCE WILLIAM: -- take thee, Catherine Elizabeth --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "to my wedded wife" --</s>PRINCE WILLIAM: -- to my wedded wife --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "to have and to hold from this day forward" --</s>PRINCE WILLIAM: -- to have and to hold from this day forward --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "for better or for worse" --</s>PRINCE WILLIAM: -- for better or for worse --</s>HRH PRINCESS CATHERINE, DUCHESS OF CAMBRIDGE: I, Catherine Elizabeth --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "take thee, William Arthur Philip Louis" --</s>PRINCESS CATHERINE: -- take thee, William Arthur Philip Louis --</s>WILLIAMS: -- "to my wedded husband" --</s>PRINCESS CATHERINE: -- as my wedded husband --</s>MALVEAUX: The couple appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace for the traditional kiss. An estimated two billion people watched the royal wedding. Well, deafening screams, cheers went out around London's Mall this morning. Some say love is in the air. Prince William and his college sweetheart Catherine have now tied the knot. Well, Zain, I know you're there in all the midst of the excitement outside Buckingham Palace. I have got my hat on for the occasion. I was up at 3:00 in the morning to take it all in. Tell us what it is like where you are.</s>VERJEE: Suzanne, it has been majestic, it has been magical, and totally electric. Hats like those have been all around the city, as well as in Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace all day today. People have been so excited, Suzanne. They have been camping out overnight, people from all around the world, all around the country. They're really excited. Many of them say that Prince William is the most popular member of the royal family. They were out there waving flags. They had all sorts of interesting memorabilia. They were excited to see al the pomp and circumstance, too. I mean, no one does it better than the Brits. You know? They've got the old horses. The lead horse, by the way, was Daniel. And he was the one that doesn't get stressed out in big crowds. But the 1902 State Landau was taken out. And they just looked amazing in that carriage there. The weather held out as well. There were about 5,500 applications for street parties around London, as well as all around the country. So a lot of people are just having a good time, and they get a day off to celebrate today, too. So the excitement is still here, and it's been a boost for the monarchy.</s>MALVEAUX: Zain, tell us about those double kisses there. What was that about? I mean, people went crazy over that.</s>VERJEE: I know. Two quick kisses. They have gone nuts here. People are really excited. Normally, it's one kiss, and no one expected a lingering kiss, although everyone was kind of hoping for one. But they gave us two. That was totally unprecedented. People were really excited. Behind me they kept chanting, "Kiss again! Kiss again!" And they did. It was just really sweet. And then people were chanting again for a hat trick. But then after the queen decided to leave the balcony, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge left as well. So it was very cute. It hasn't happened before.</s>MALVEAUX: And Zain, were there any missteps, any mistakes?</s>VERJEE: Well, you know, what's a good wedding without a little bit of good gossip, Suzanne, right? So, a lot of people were actually talking about Pippa, Kate Middleton's sister -- now the Duchess of Cambridge's sister. She was wearing white, which is traditionally what the bride wears. But they are actually really close. She wore an amazing dress. It was a pretty unforgiving one, but she did look great in it. So, some people were saying, oh, she shouldn't really have worn white. Then, also, take a look at this video of Victoria Beckham. She's actually wearing midnight blue, but it kind of looks like she's wearing black. So, when she arrived at the ceremony, a lot of people were saying, hang on a minute, that's bad luck. You can't wear black. You can't wear black. So that was gossiped about. And then the prime minister's wife, Samantha Cameron, did not show up with a hat. It's Westminster Abbey. You should have a hat. That was what was on the invitation, but she didn't wear one, so that's a little gossipy behind the scenes.</s>MALVEAUX: All right. We like that gossip, Zain. And next go- around, we want to see the hat that you wore for the next go-around. OK?</s>VERJEE: All right.</s>MALVEAUX: OK. Thanks, Zain. If you missed any of the royal wedding moments, Piers Morgan has all of them for you. It is a CNN two-hour crowning event tonight, a from kiss to cake, relive the royal wedding's big moments with Piers Morgan at a special time,</s>CNN, 8: 00 p.m. Eastern. Here's your chance to "Talk Back" about one of the big stories of the day. We are just a few hours away from the last launch of space shuttle Endeavour. After that, there's just one more shuttle launch for the U.S. space program, and it brings us to today's question. Carol Costello with more -- Carol.</s>COSTELLO: I'm so glad you took off that hat for my sake.</s>MALVEAUX: I think we have a hat for you. So don't worry about that.</s>COSTELLO: OK. Let's talk about the space program, though, shall we? July 20, 1969, I was a little girl back then, but I will never forget that day. I was watching it on TV with my dad, and there he was, an American hero, Neil Armstrong, stepping on to the surface of the moon.</s>NEIL ARMSTRONG, ASTRONAUT: That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.</s>COSTELLO: With those words, American won. We beat the Soviets on to the moon, just as President Kennedy asked us to do. Fast forward to today, April 29, 2001. Landing on the moon is old hat. America's president, Barack Obama, is going to Florida to witness the last mission of the of the space shuttle Endeavour, and it's bittersweet. But many believe in this tough time, we cannot afford the space shuttle program. NASA has to think of something new. For commander Mark Kelly, it comes down to this --</s>CAPT. MARK KELLY, COMMANDER, STS-134: I know when I get back from STS-134, from this last flight of Endeavour, I'll be thinking the same thing, I can't really give this up. I've got to figure out a way to get back into space again.</s>COSTELLO: But will he? Will we? NASA dreams of landing on Mars. But who knows it if will have enough money to do that? The $1.3 billion of its $19 billion budget is earmarked for commercial development. Maybe private companies will bring back some of those jobs lost when the shuttle program ends. And there's an ironic twist here. Without the space shuttle, NASA astronauts will have to rely on Russian rockets to get to the International Space Station. So, "Talk Back" today: What will the last space shuttle mission mean for America? Facebook.com/CarolCNN, and I'll read your comments later this hour.</s>MALVEAUX: Very interesting question. I mean, really. Because if you think about it, the Bush administration, he wanted to send us to Mars. The Obama administration said hold on, let's put our money to where we need to go.</s>COSTELLO: I know.</s>MALVEAUX: And now the astronauts say, what do we do now? What's next for us?</s>COSTELLO: And the thing is, is the space program has always been symbolic of something bigger. It's what Americans do.</s>MALVEAUX: Absolutely.</s>COSTELLO: We're a can do nation. If we put our minds to it, we can do it. And that's what it's always symbolized. But what does it symbolize now?</s>MALVEAUX: Right. All right. Great question, Carol. Thanks. I'll get the hat for you, too, by the way.</s>COSTELLO: I can't wait.</s>MALVEAUX: Here's a rundown of some of the stories that we're covering in the next two hours. First, gearing up for its final flight, space shuttle Endeavour is now on the launch pad. And the first family is in Alabama to get a personal look of what's left after the tornadoes. And she pulled her daughters into a tanning bed moments before the storm tore off the roof. We've got more stories of survival that you're not going to want to miss. And finally, the power of the tsunami. Incredible new video of the nightmare Japan is still waking up from.