good morning. the bin laden tapes. extraordinary home videos of the terror mastermind taken in the hideout showing him practicing his speeches, even checking out his performance on tv. this morning why they were released and what we're learning from them. twist of fate -- a chance encounter between two strangers on a beach in hawaii. who would believe they'd turn out to be long lost brothers? this morning they join us exclusively to talk about their remarkable reunion. and surge to victory. >> here comes animal kingdom in the middle of the racetrack. animal kingdom and john develop s

a kez to win the derby! animal kingdom charges across the finish line in the kentucky derby a 21-1 long shot turned champion now beguning for the triple crown. "today," sunday, may 8, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a sunday morning. i'm lester holt. >> and i'm jenna wolfe. first and foremost to the 85 million moms including my mom, sheila, who is probably at home with her cup of coffee watching, happy mother's day to everybody. >> to all the moms out there, happy mother's day. busy news day. the videos of bin laden. >> there's that and what happened with the race yesterday. there's just a lot of news across the board. it's a busy day. >> we'll show you the pictures seized during the raid in

pakistan. they show the al qaeda leader holding a remote control watching himself on tv. it's a fascinating glimpse into his life in hiding. the tapes are revealing in many ways. we'll show you how the u.s. government is using and what more they may tell us about his life. >> and take a look at this. this is memphis fighting to hold back the mississippi river. the pictures are unbelievable. officials there fear a catastrophe if the flooding continues. the rising waters could reach near historic levels. we'll have much more on what could be a disaster in the making. just ahead, weather has been such an issue across the board. >> tornadoes, flooding, you name it. it may be the trial of the year. casey anthony accused of murdering her daughter, caylee, heads to court tomorrow as jury selection finally gets under way. the trial will be televised and in a rare turn of events her parents will be witnesses for both the defense and the prosecution and, we learned this week, they will be allowed to actually sit in during the rest of the trial. we'll have a preview coming up. >> then as we get ready for the final mission of the space shuttle "endeavour," you

actually shared a right with captain mark kelly. >> never left the launch pad but we were in the simulator. he showed me what happens if you're on a mission and you're up there and you lose an engine on the way to orbit, it's dramatic. we went for a virtual space walk. >> is that what you do when you feel the gravity leave you. >> no, but you put these goggles on and you actually look over and seep the shuttle and the other astronauts, happened each other tools. >> that's different than flying a plane. does it feel different? >> in the simulator it feels different. you walk out in your street clothes and it's always a good landing. >> it's an easy landing, too, no turbulence. let's get started with the secret life of osama bin laden revealed in home video taken inside the compound where he hid and where the navy s.e.a.l.s found him. pentagon correspondent jim miklaszewski joins us with more. >> reporter: a senior u.s. intelligence official says that the information gathered at bin laden's compound in pakistan provided the single largest

collection of senior terrorist material ever. but the star of the show was never before-before-seen home v bin laden himself, and it wasn't pretty. the videotapes that first appear to be all too familiar, a strident osama bin laden delivering another anti-american rant. but in these tapes seize bid navy s.e.a.l.s we get the first gl glimpse of bin laden not as the world's most notorious terrorist but as a prisoner in his own compound. armed only with a tv remote, bin laden's watching videos of himself. he appears as an old man in a stocking cap wrapped in a woollen blanket against the cold. the room itself is sparse and hardly a mansion. and unlike the stage videos where his beard is dyed black, here it's mostly gray. u.s. officials say it's the same gray beard bin laden had when the american commandos shot and killed him. >> and at the end, here he dies

isolated, a prisoner as much as if he's in a maximum security for the better part of five years now. >> reporter: the u.s. government clearly released the tapes to portray bin laden not as the inspirational leader of the terrorist movement but as an aging fugitive just trying to survive. in some segments bin laden is seen stumbling lou his lines, glancing off camera for direction. but pictures can be deceiving. despite the unflattering videos, u.s. intelligence officials say bin laden was still actively involved in the strategic and tactical terrorist operations of al qaeda and still interested in attacking the u.s. targets that would create mass casualties such as planes or trains. but for nearly ten years he's also been on the run. the past five years confined to this compound surrounded only by close family and a couple of trusted couriers. >> what is important is for

multiple years he never left a compound, never got on a telephone and lived trying to survive against the surveillance and scrutiny of the united states. >> reporter: at the same time u.s. officials claim bin laden's death has thrown al qaeda itself into disarray. and that the group's number two, ayman al zawahiri, lacks the chr charisma to follow bin laden. u.s. intelligence officials also suggest some elements of the pakistani military and intelligence services just has to know that bin laden was there and some serious questions are now being asked. >> clearly the government's cherry picked which things they wanted to show us, and that makes us wonder all the more what are they not showing us in terms of documents and videos? how much do they really have? >> reporter: according to all accounts they have a treasure trove of information, terror

plots. and one of the big questions nobody is talking about, did, in fact, as many suspected, al qaeda have secret cells implanted in the u.s., canada, and in europe as many had suspected? but these are the kinds of things they're not going to share with us but because, quite frankly, they don't want to give the bad guys any tips as to where they're heading with this. >> jim miklaszewski in washington, thanks. the videos and all the materials seized from the xund, offer a wealth of information from intelligence officials. roger cresse is our counterterrorism analyst. roger, good morning. thanks for being with us. >> you bet, lester. >> i get what the u.s. government wants us to take away from it and that was osama bin laden wasn't ten feet tall. he was a regular guy. what do followers get from the video that is have been released? >> you look at these videos, lester, and you think of the old tv commercial, image is everything. bin laden was still trying to pr promote a certain image of him seven to support the narrative

that al qaeda was putting out. and i think what this will do it will expose part of that narrative. bin laden was hiding. he was isolated. though he had tremendous control over elements of the al qaeda network, he was living a very, very difficult life. and that will run counter to some of the narratives he has put out. >> they didn't include sound with these video clips. one of them we understand was unreleased, it was an unreleased message recorded last fall, october/november. do we know why it was not released and how significant it might have been? >> well, we don't yet there could be many reasons. the most obvious one is we don't want to put bin laden's voice out there because when you do that, that is what the followers are going to pay attention to. looking at the images and comparing and contrasting, and with his dyed beard, a very old man, obsessing with his image on tf t v trying to follow how they ae covering him. >> the other narrative he was very much in charge, that this

was still a command and control center, if you will. it gets me to wonder why there has not been a follow on the 9/11 attack. was he leading an 0 organization that was really fractured? >> it was fractured, lester but, remember, al qaeda in the yemeni based franchise twice in the past 12 months came very close to attacking the homeland. that wasn't al qaeda central. i, for one, do not believe there is a network inside the united states of potential operatives ready to strike. i think we are going to see individuals who are communicating with al qaeda and the like. the real reason, lester, why they didn't -- why they have been successful since then, they got incredibly lucky on 9/11. they're not that good and our defense has gotten really good. >> thanks so much. nine minutes after the hour. to jenna. to the surging mississippi river and growing fears that massive flooding could strike the heart of membphis. the river is swelling to near record levels and officials are urging residents to leave their homes or face the potential

disaster. nbc's jay gray is live in memphis. good morning. >> reporter: hey, jenna, and this is why they are urging people to leave. i'm standing behind the montessori school. this used to be a playground. now it is a part of the river here. take a look behind me and show you what the water is doing. it's already swallowed the bottom level of these homes behind me. the homeowner in this house has already moved everything out and expects it to climb to the next level of her home. if you move back across the water, you can only see the roof of a storage shed and it is about to go completely under. and as we come back across and get back to the school here, sandbags put in place two or three days ago, now being pressed into service here as the water continues to climb. faster than originally thought. we've now learned that the primary floodgates here in memphis was not working and the water is actually rising a bit faster than anyone thought it would. over 47 feet at this point and expected to crest a bit earlier.

now it will crest at a near record of 48 feet some time late tomorrow night into tuesday, too. >> jay, just looking at those pictures it's obvious people had to evacuate and evacuate quickly. where is everybody going? how many shelters are open in the area for everyone? >> reporter: last night officials opened four shelters here and hundreds were pouring into that area can. now emergency managers here in memphis believe as many as 20,000 people may need shelter before all of this is over. a big fear, though, jenna, for a lot of people is leaving their homes, leaving them unattended. they're afraid of looting. so the police chief has announced that all of the officers days off have been canceled and they will work around the clock during the flood. >> somebody throw him a rope. >> the pictures are incredible. a check of the morning's headlines with richard lui. good morning, lester, jenna, good morning, everyone. we begin in egypt where ten were

killed and near ly 200 injured. the violence was not sparked by violence. a woman abducted and held in a church. the army put tanks in the area and the prime minister called for an emergency meeting regarding the latest long-standing religious strife there. family and friends of phylicia barnes gathered to mourn her death. they wore purple, her favorite color. the 16-year-old went visiting family in baltimore during christmas. she was reported missing. her body was found in a river 40 miles north of the city. investigators confirmed this is a homicide but no arrests have been made. and freedom for two pilot whales found stranded in the florida keys. the first of seven whales that survived and are deemed healthy enough. five others are being cared for in a sea pen east of key west. 14 whales died after strand iin themselves in shallow water.

they are unsure why the whales came to shore. and finally we first heard smoky the cat's loud purr here on today. yeah, now i'm happy to report to you it is official. the 12-year-old feline from england has been certified as the world's loudest cat by the guinness book of world records. just how loud for you? 67.7 decibels, almost as loud as a vacuum cleaner. well, lester, jenna, janice, i'm sure it might be louder than that vacuum cleaner you might have. >> can't wait to hear a hairball. >> are they sure it didn't swallow a bird? that's what it sounds like. >> tweetie bird. >> janice is here. good morning. good morning. it is mother's day so happy mother's day to all the moms out there. i wish the weather was better in some parts of the country, especially the northern plains. you have the potential for severe weather today across parts of the dakotas into nebraska and iowa. watch out. there could be tornadoes, large

hail and damaging winds across that region. otherwise it's nice and and happy mom's day to you. looking at the south bay right now, you can see we've got a little bit of light rain and drizzle in few spots, especially around the i hadtops of the east bay. we're going see partly cloudy skies this afternoon. cool temperatures and still a slight chance for an isolated shower near the hills. temperatures fit for a san jose shark. of cures the game gets started at 5:00 this evening, 50s and low 60s for highs today. tomorrow, clearing skies and warmer for the middle part of the week. now here's lester. >> janice, thanks. the bizarre twist in the search of a missing couple who vanished two months ago while on a road trip to las vegas. this weekend the wife surfaced without her husband and with an incredible story of survival to tell. nbc's kristen welker has more. >> reporter: alive, atv riders

found rita chretian friday after she'd been missing for seven weeks. authorities say she was stranded in her van in the rugged mountains, her only food water from a mereby creek and snow. she lost almost 30 pounds. now recovering at an idaho hospital, doctors say she is upbeat and doing remarkably well. >> she has had a meal. she seems to be doing very well. she has taken some food in. the doctors are very confident about a full recovery. >> reporter: the ordeal started march 19th when rita and her husband, albert, left their home in vancouver, british columbia, and headed to a trade show in las vegas. that same day a surveillance camera captured the pair at a store in eastern oregon. but authorities say something went it terribly wrong about 400 miles later when they got to elko county, nevada. >> apparently took a bad road,

became stuck. >> reporter: authorities say rita told them after three days her husband left their van on foot with the gps to get help. she hasn't seen him since. >> approximately a group of 20 individuals that are searching. they have six to eight atv vehicles and several 4x4 vehicles and searchers on foot. >> reporter: according to authorities conditions for searching are rough. the area is rugged and snowy. some portions are impassable and there's little cell service. still, loved ones are holding on to hope. they traveled from canada to be with rita. the family won't have a truly happy ending until albert is also found. for "today" kristen welker, nbc news, los angeles. up next here on "today" the long shot champion of the kentucky derby right after this. ♪

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we appreciate you being here. has it all really sunk in yet? >> it hasn't sunk in for me. i don't think it will for a while. >> let me ask you about this race. it was an interesting one. it looked like shackelford was ahead and out of nowhere here comes animal kingdom. was that the strategy all along? is that how you had planned it? >> when i spoke with johnny about the race, our main strat they was to keep him out of trouble. when you have 20 horses in a field, that's the biggest obstacle is keeping a horse out of trouble and he did a great job. >> this is an interesting horse, animal kingdom. he was bred to be a turf horse, not to run on dirt. how did you get this horse to be ready to race on a track like this? >> we gave him good work at c r churchill and he handled it well. we felt good about it going into the race. >> barry, you changed

trainingers last fall. how much did that have to do with the outcome of this race? >> i think it had a lot to do with the outcome. this is a real tall horse. he was very immature last year physically and he needed to be trained by a guy that is good with long distance horses and doesn't really put a lot of pressure on him. i think the horse really thrived under graham regime. >> so, barry, you changed trainers. this is a horse that wasn't even supposed to race on dirt and, also, you had an issue with the jockey. johnny v. wasn't supposed to be the jockey on top of animal kingdom. is that right? >> right. we had named another rider, robby alvarado, but he got hurt earlier in the week and broke his nose and we thought he'd be back riding by friday. when he took off friday, which is a very big day around here, also, we got concerned and graham spoke with him. we decided to make a change to

johnny velazquez. >> is this horse going to be out there and ready to take the triple crown, to go all three? does the game plan change heading into the next two races? >> the great thing is we have a fresh horse. he's very lightly raced. he hasn't had a hard campaign leading up to this race. so we're going to go on to the preakness feeling good. >> we thank you so much. congratulations to you both. and we're back. i have what science calls the "nightly stuffy nose thing": i can't breathe... so i can't sleep... and the next day i pay for it. i tried decongestants... i tossed & turned... i even vaporized! and then i fought back: with drug-free breathe right advanced. these nasal strips instantly opened my nose, like a breath of fresh air. i was breathing and sleeping better! [ female announcer ] exercise your right to breathe right...

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still to come, it's been three years, the murder trial of casey anthony finally getting under way. >> plus, lost no more. the amazing tale of how two brothers finally found each other after years apart. [ sneezes ] allergies? you think i have allergies? you're sneezing. i'm allergic to you. doubtful, you love me. hey, you can't take allegra with fruit juice. what? yeah, it's on the label. really? here, there's nothing about juice on the zyrtec® label. what? labels are meant to be read. i'd be lost without you. i knew you weren't allergic to me. [ sneezes ] you know, you can't take allegra with orange juice. both: really? fyi. [ male announcer ] get zyrtec®'s proven allergy relief and love the air®.

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we're back on this sunday morning, may 8th, 2011. happy mother's day to all the moms out there. all the moms who are here hanging out with us. a perfect day in new york to celebrate the holidays. you have a gorgeous one weatherwise. and a nice crowd here. we thank them for spending part of their day with us. >> and if you forgot to send a mother's day card they're all set right here. >> you just have to grab one, sign it and bring it home with you. >> i got this especially for you, mom. >> mom, this is for you. love jenna. it actually works out perfectly. out on the plaza i'm jenna wolfe alongside lester holt. jury selection begins

tomorrow in the casey anthony trial. >> the case will be watched by a lot of people around the country. it's generate add huge amount of interest ever since and ththonyd her young daughter vanished. her remains were found in 2009. casey anthony could face the death penalty if convicted. we'll have more on the upcoming trial including picking the jury. that's a secret today. >> and then we'll switch gers to a happier story. a man is on the beach in hawaii when he has a chance encount wer a perfect stranger, at least he thought. the two start talking. turns out the stranger is, in fact, the man's long lost half-brother. the two will join us in a moment to talk about their fateful meeting and how it forever changed their lives. >> a really cool story, isn't it? >> it's a really heartwarming story. >> people say i'm a space cadet. we continue the journey. my captain was none other than mark kelly.

it was a thrilling ride for me even if i didn't reach the stars but it felt like it. i'll tell you and show you what the astronauts go through. >> after having done that, do you feel you made the wrong career choice? i know they put so much work in. >> i'm in awe but i'm going to be here for a while. i'll stay grounded. >> just thought i'd ask. first, another check of the the weather with janice huff. hey, janice. on this beautiful mother's day here in new york. my good friend asha and her mom are here for mother's day. happy mother's day. and, let's see, where are the other moms today? right here. what are you going to do on this day? >> i came to new york from virginia. >> is your daughter here? >> yes. >> happy mother's day to everybody. let's check the weather. here in the northeast it's a great day but watch out there is a slight risk of severe weather across parts of the northern and central plains in the dakotas into nebraska, western iowa, also over central texas.

strong thunderstorms. there could be isolated tornadoes even today. the same thing tomorrow. nice and warm across the southwest and the southeast as well. and you can check your weather anytime by logging on to weather.com. now here's lester. janice, thanks. it began in 2008 when a young mother in florida reported that her daughter, caylee, was missing. within months the mother, casey anthony, would be charged with the child's murder. the case has made headlines around the country and tomorrow

the explosive trial begins. nbc's kerry sanders is in miami with more with a preview. kerry, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, lester. the nation has not seen a murder trial like this since perhaps the o.j. simpson trial. 340r than 500 reporters from around the world have requested credentials just to go to the courthouse to cover this trial. the judge is so concerned with pretrial attention he won't even reveal what florida city he's going to use to select the jurors. even before she was accused of murdering her own child, casey anthony's story was captivating. a then 22-year-old mother whose adorable 2-year-old daughter, caylee, mysteriously disappears. but when details in the case began to come out, investigators said something didn't add up. the time line. she had waited 31 days to tell anyone her daughter was missing.

and when she finally told her story, it was only under pressure from her mother, cindy. cindy had gone to the lot where the car casey was driving had been towed. then she dialed 911. >> there's something wrong. i found my daughter's car today and it smells like there's been a dead body in the damn car. >> reporter: repeated searches turned up no signs of caylee and then six months from when deputies began their investigation, her skeletal remains were found in the orlando underbrush, only a five-minute walk away. >> i certainly have never seen anything like this. >> reporter: from the beginning casey anthony's legal team has said she is not guilty. >> she's not running from this. she has never attempted to run away from this situation. >> reporter: but the evidence prosecutors will present is compelling. photos of casey out partying in orlando when her daughter was allegedly missing. a single strand of caylee's hair in the car's trunk, the

prosecution say came from caylee's dead body. and then the residue from a heart shaped sticker found on a piece of duct tape prosecutors will say was placed over caylee's mouth. in all jurors will hear about 25,000 pages of evidence in the case. because jurors will come from another florida city and they will be sequestered in orlando for the entire eight-week-long trial needing a 12 member jury will be a challenge. >> there will be many, many legitimate reasons why decent people that you might want on a jury like this can't serve. because of the hardship. being out of town, the duration of the case. >> reporter: one more challenge for the jurors listening to all the scientific evidence will be coming to the conclusion there was even a murder. the medical examiner ruled it's a homicide but officially it's a homicide by undetermined means which means the medical examiner can't say and prosecutors won't be able to present how caylee was murdered.

>> kerry, let me go back a moment. you say jury selection is starting tomorrow. when will the judge even reveal the location where that's taking place? >> reporter: the jury selection will begin tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. and the judge says he will reveal that just beforehand. we don't know which city. and you know florida is a very big state. but they're going to have to spend at least a week trying to select the 12-member jury plus the eight alternates. >> kerry sanders, thanks. beth karas is a correspondent for "in session" on ittrutv. kerry mentioned the cause of death is even listed as a homicide but they can't tell the manner of the death. is this a hard case? >> well, it's a circumstantial evidence case and, you know what, circumstantial evidence cases can be even more compelling than when you have an eyewitness. eyewitnesses can make mistakes and they have made mistakes over the years but a circumstantial evidence case, all fl these legal bits fit together and there's no other explanation

except for one, that she did it, will argue the prosecutors, can be very compelling. >> you take out the tape and the other pieces of scientific evidence and you seep the pictures of her partying when her child is missing, you are ought mat thecal automatically not going to like her but will you convict? >> is her behavior in that 31-day period and the statement she made to the police and then it's the forensic or scientific evidence and, you're right, it's hard to like her because of what she was doing during those 31 days. maybe they'll put her on the stand and have an explanation for it, also. >> casey's mom tried to visit her in jail after months of not seeing her. what's the story with this relationship? when they meet that becomes public and that becomes problematic, right? >> right. and they didn't want yesterday's meeting, it had taken place, to be public. but that was never decided because the meeting didn't take place. the mother/daughter relationship is a volatile one. they love each other but they've had some problems and casey

obviously opted to just not to rock the boat on the eve of trial. >> mom and dad become witnesses for the prosecution and the defense. i kind of understand that. but they're going to be allowed to sit in as a regular spectator. isn't there a fear that their testimony could be tainted by watching the others? >> that's a good question. but they have testified so many times under oath that their story is out there, sworn to several times. they're not the going to change their story now as they're sitting in the courtroom. they have a right as grandparents of that baby to be in the courtroom. we see witnesses sit in the courtroom, police officers sit in the courtroom, expert witnesses do. so there are exceptions to the rule. >> going back to the scientific evidence, what do you think is the most damning, the most problematic for her? is it the stain found in the car? is is it the smell? >> well, we don't know if the smell evidence is coming in. the that's pretty bad. i'll tell you, where the remains were found and how, tape wrapped around the head, a laundry bag inside a garbage bag, consistent with one inside the anthony

home. the baby is found a quarter after mile from where casey and her parents lived in the wooded area where casey used to spend time with her girlfriends years before. that's pretty bad. >> a horrific story. maybe soon we'll get the answers. beth, good to have you on. thanks very much. appreciate it. perfect strangers. we'll meet the two men reunited as brothers. their chance encounter. [ man ] i've seen beautiful things. ♪ i've seen the sunrise paint the desert. witnessed snowfall on the first day of spring. ♪ but the most beautiful thing i've ever seen was the image on a screen that helped our doctor see my wife's cancer was treatable. [ male announcer ] ge technologies help doctors detect cancer early so they can save more lives. bringing better health to more people. ♪

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when a complete stranger offers to take your family's picture. after some polite conversation you realize the man taking the picture is actually your half-brother. that's what happened to rick hill and joe parker. and we're going to talk to them exclusively in just a moment. but first, more on their chance encounter. boston area resident rick hill and his family vacationing in hawaii weren't playing to go to waikiki beach that day. and joe parker, still settling into his new hawaiian home and job on the beach, wasn't sure why he offered to take the family picture. but it was a photo opportunity a lifetime in the making. for joe life had been challenging, but he was finally happy. he'd grown up in foster care in the boston area. at the age of 21, his uncle dickie told him that he was actually his father and that he had a half-brother. rick had grown up a town away from joe with his mother and stepfather. when he was 30, he learned that he had a half-brother but that

was all he knew. they they lived different lives, it was do you know that led the two men to realize they shared the same father, dickie. in hawaii the word ohana means family and it was on these shores that two half brothers found each other in a chance meeting and a family snapshot. what an incredible story. with us now joe parker and rick hill. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> let me wrap my head around this story. rick, you're in waikiki. you weren't even supposed to be on that part of the island. you're doing one of those things with your family, you're trying to take a picture. tell me about that afternoon. >> that's correct. we had no intention on going to waikiki that day because we were staying on the other side of the island and we got down to the beach and i had asked mo to take a picture of me and the kids. >> your fiancee?

>> she started taking a picture and joe said, why don't you jump in the picture. >> and joe was a random guy walking along the beach? >> that's correct. >> why were you walking on the beach and who were you to take a picture of this family you don't know? >> i got out of the car business to take this job on the beach. i was trying to be hospitable and take a picture of a family enjoying waikiki. >> you get everyone together and instead of saying say cheese, you had them say something else? >> briefly in conversation i recognized his accent. he said something like that would be wicked cool. and then we exchanged information about the town. >> because you grew up there. >> right. and then we had said something about where are you from? he said boston. i said but what part? i said, wow, i'm from the next town over. when his fiancee got back in the shot, i said, hey, salem on -- his fiancee was like, wow, why did you say that?

>> how does this random guy now my small town? >> i was surprised and then he started dropping a couple of names. >> and one of the names was? >> dick. >> your father. >> and that's when my knees buckled and i was really taken back like how would he know my father. >> had you ever tried to look up joe? you found out you had a half-brother. had you ever tried to look him up? >> no, not really. we had never talked before. i kind of knew that he was out there but i didn't know where. i didn't know how to get in touch with him. when you're in your mid-30s, it was meant to be. i think god works in mysterious ways and i think that day on the beach was meant to be. it was in the plans 0 to meet. >> joe, have you ever tried to reach out to your half-brother when you found out you had one? >> no, actually when i found out we had one, we were living in different parts of the country and just didn't work out and it went away. a lot of people call it a

miracle. it's unbelievable the circumstances surrounding. the fact i said that name, i don't know why i said that name. he looks and sounds just like our father. but at the time he told me his name and he asked me if i knew some people and ironic. >> the last couple of weeks, have you been in touch? >> every day. >> every day? >> every day we've talked at least once or twice. i'm learning a lot about joe and it's so great to have a brother. he has a lot of issues but he's a great guy. >> you're already acting like brothers. >> one of the biggest issues is i'm the better looking and he's having a hard time with that. >> you're not only learning about rick but you're learning about yourself through rick. >> that's right. just last night we had a very emotional dinner. i told rick, i said, and it's tough to talk about now. i told rick, because of my background and upbringing, i'm

just now after 38 years finding myself. i turned 38 on easter sunday. i metric six days before my birthday which is ironic. >> it all has a way -- >> it's a miracle. >> and you wanted to wish a happy mother's day to everyone. >> happy mother's day to my mom and to mo and to all the mothers in america. god bless all the troops out there serving our country. >> you're a former marine? >> yes, ma'am. >> it means a lot coming from you. joe, rick, i thank you so much. i'm sure this is just the beginning after long and fruitful half-brother relationship. >> it's been a great ride. >> hopefully it ends up where he can move to hawaii and we can make up for the 38 years we lost. >> and thank you to the "today" show for bringing us to new york today. >> awesome. we're happy to have you. this is a privilege for us, too. >> aloha. just ahead, up and away. "endeavour's" shuttle commander gives lester a lesson he'll never forget. it always happens.

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the final flight for the space shuttle "endeavour" was pushed back again with the earliest launch date set for may 16th when the shuttle does take off, it will be commanded by captain mark kelly whose wife, represe representative gabrielle giffords, continues to make extraordinary progress after being shot earlier this year. before that tragedy i got to join up with kelly who gave me a lesson in what it means to soar into orbit. >> "discovery" --

>> with three shuttle missions and hundreds of simulated flights like this one behind him, mark kelly will be one of the last astronauts to sit in this seat. >> i'm a little sad. it's been the work horse of the american space program for in excess of 20 years. >> but it has never become old hat for those who fly them. >> watching from the ground it appears generally safe but we have lost two complete crews. to lose two of them statistically it's an unsafe vehicle. >> when the final mission lands this year fewer than 400 people will have flown aboard a shuttle. i'm about to get a little taste of what it's like. >> houston, "endeavour," it looks like it's down. >> we're starting to pitch over. >> we just lost a main engine moments after liftoff. >> the two engines that we have remaining, which is the left and the right, it's not enough to get us to orbit, so we're going

to have to turn around land. >> kelly calmly issues commands to the autopilot to bring us home. >> we're going to come back and land at the kennedy space center. >> the final approach, however, is flown by hand and in this case my hand. i'll show you how that turns out in a second. if this were real we'd be fully enclosed in bulky escape suits which give new meaning to the term layering. the suits are potential lifesave lifesavers. >> the helmet, the boots and gloves to keep them fully pressurized. >> but here in huston street clothes are the order of the day as i join the crew of the "endeavour" above a spinning earth for a virtual reality space walk. oh, my goodness. >> when you first get up there, you look out the window and it's not what you expect. it's a little bit disturbing.

>> and apparently uncomfortable, too. >> the direct sun, you can feel it heating up and if you're out too long you have to cool off. >> back in the simulator i'm starting to feel warm under the collar trying to land a 100-ton glider. that's the runway i'm looking at. we are coming down like a rock. commander kelly coaches me all the way to the runway. tell me, did i just land this? >> you did did. i didn't touch anything. did you a great job. >> thank you. but then the reality check that quickly brings me back down-to-earth. >> what makes this actual hi hard is you've been in space for two weeks. you've been sleeping about four or five hours a night. you're dehydrated, you're tired, your central nervous system is messed up. you're in a suit, you're hot and sweating and you have one chance to land it. >> it's that one chance that he kept reminding me of.

you're going down and it's not like you can go around and throttle up. there's no power. >> and there are so many factors and variables involved and the elements are so difficult that that one chance is coming with everything else all around you. >> they're amazing. i appreciate captain kelly and the crew letting me hang around we have mowire ahead.or he mo ahead. bay! kin! cheese! [ alarm ] spinach-spinach- spinach-spinach-spinach- spinach-spinach-spinach. to...mae to... tur...key... jal...a...penos. banana peppers... black forest ham... [ dj ] served on toasty flatbread by request. ♪ with sweet onion sauce, drizzled across... ♪ [ male announcer ] wake up to the fresh taste of subway breakfast with the sunrise subway melt on tasty flatbread. make it your own with all your favorite ingredients, like fresh spinach, yummy tomatoes, or one of our zest-erific sauces. build your better breakfast, only at subway. or one of our zest-erific sauces. >>it's breakfast ont the go! want some? negative. commencing standard breakfast procedure. sfx: bzzzzzzz. humanize your morning.

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let's check in with david gregory. >> good morning, lester. coming up, a special edition. the president's national security adviser plus perspective from the former mayor of new york city, rudy giuliani, former director of the usa and former secretary of home lapped security michael chertoff. then our political roundtable as well all coming up this morning on "meet the press." >> you bet, david. thanks. >> that's going to do it for us.

thank you so much. >> i'll see you later tonight. until then, so long and happy mother's day.