tonight, historic deal. the nuclear agreement that could change the world. the white house says it will keep iran from getting the bomb. opponents say it will do the opposite setting up a new showdown. crippling floods. a state of emergency in kentucky. at least two dead several missing as flooding sweeps away buildings. we're theren the ground. sole survivor. a plane crash in the pacific northwest kills a couple but spares their granddaughter. tonight her harrowing trek through the wild to safety. and far out. a nine-year nasa mission to pluto sends back awe-inspiring photos from the edge of the solar system. is it another giant leap for mankind? "nightly news" begins right now.

>> announcer: from nbc news world headquarters in new york this is "nbc nightly news with lester holt." first the deal now the sell. with today's historic agreement to curb iran's nuclear program the obama white house tonight is trying to convince nervous mideast neighbors and the american congress that there is no better alternative. the u.s. and five other nations struck the deal with iran overnight, offering iran relief from economic sanctions in exchange for limits on nuclear production. but questions over compliance and verification along with iran's history of provoking instability in the middle east are planting seeds of doubt in high places. we have full coverage tonight. we begin with our chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell from vienna. andrea? >> good evening, lester. well after years and decades in fact of calling each another great satan and the axis of evil iran and the u.s. are now entering uncharted territory. a diplomatic agreement to reduce iran's

suspected nuclear threat. john kerry and his iranian counterpart javad zarif, weary but celebrating the deal to reduce iran's nuclear capability in exchange for billions of dollars with the end of crippling sanctions. years in the making it came together after 18 long days and nights of intense talks. kerry even personally edited the final draft at 3:00 this morning. after a midnight call vienna time to the president in the oval office. >> this deal offers an opportunity to move in a new direction. we should seize it. >> reporter: iran accepts limits on its nuclear production for ten years and on nuclear fuel and equipment for 15 years. iran promises more access for u.n. inspectors to suspect sites but with notice. but iran gets an economic lifeline. hundreds of billions of dollars in sanctions relief. once it meets those nuclear commitments perhaps by the end of the year. re-entry into the

global banking system. and five to eight years from now an end to the u.n. arms and ballistic missiles embargo. >> so how do you justify down the road taking off the arms embargo on conventional weapons and ballistic missiles? >> the united states doesn't lose anything andrea by giving them the opportunity to prove this is a peaceful program. what's the alternative? go to war no everybody want to say automatically let's bomb iran? is that the alternative? >> reporter: the deal is a tough sell with critics in washington and tehran as iran's foreign minister acknowledges. >> a lot of mistrust in the ability and intention of the united states to live up to this agreement. and to try to implement its part of the deal. so it's going to be a difficult exercise. >> reporter: and in a call today president obama tried to reassure israel's prime minister netanyahu. but sources say got nowhere.

a landmark deal setting off a global debate that won't end anytime soon. andrea mitchell nbc news vienna. i'm richard engel in israel where prime minister benjamin netanyahu issued his first blistering statement almost as soon as the ink was dry. >> this is a bad mistake. of stark proportions. >> reporter: netanyahu has been criticizing the deal in tweets in hebrew english, even farsi, the language of iran. but in tehran they weren't listening. >> we did it! we finally did it! >> reporter: nbc's ali arouzi is in the crowd tonight. >> there's singing and dancing on the streets of tehran. you never see this. people are overjoyed and they're -- [ cheers ] >> reporter: but in israel there's no faith the iranian regime can or will change. deal or no deal. >> no wonder there are streets celebrating, because they got everything they wanted

and the west got nothing at all. >> reporter: netanyahu said as far as israel is concerned the west just got -- >> the leading international powers are betting our future on a deal with a formal sponsor of international terrorism. >> reporter: israelis worry they'll have to pay the price if this diplomatic gamble doesn't work. >> i think he made a big mistake. obama. but no one can do nothing. he decided, and he was so determined in this mission. >> reporter: the ent couldn't stop the deal in vienna. but it's hardly giving up. the next step is to use israel's friends and supporters to spike the deal in washington. a retired general here in tel aviv told us israel's next battle will be on capitol hill. netanyahu is hoping republicans in congress will agree the deal gives away far too much. while israel has been by far the most vocal

critic arab states especially saudi arabia are also skeptical. they worry that iran will cheat and that an emboldened tehran will just make the middle east even more chaotic. lester? >> richard engel in tel aviv tonight. thank you. i want to turn now to chuck todd nbc news political director and moderator of "meet the press" in our washington bureau. chuck, how deep is the opposition in congress to this deal? >> well, look, it's pretty deep. lester it was really hard to find a republican either on the presidential campaign trail or on capitol hill to say anything nice about this deal at all. most of them criticized it before even reading the deal. that said the senate republican leader mitch mcconnell admitted that congress's ability to actually block the implementation 69 of the agreement is going to be very hard, and here's why. while congress has some oversight on what sanctions the president can turn off, the republican-controlled congress is going to try to do, that try to reject the deal send it to the president. the president will veto that bill. then there's going to be an attempt to override that veto. now, here's what it

will take. all the republicans plus 13 senate democrats and 44 house democrats when you look at the numbers. in every conversation i've had today it is clear, lester that there is a hardcore 8 to 10 hawkish senate democrats who will vote with the republicans on this and try to kill this deal. but right now that's it. and the white house is making this argument to any other wavering democrats -- if congress derails the deal they argue the united states then would get the blame for having no more sanctions in place and allowing iran to pursue a nuclear program. >> and chuck, there are those who are already talking about this as a legacy item for the president. but we don't know how this legacy gets written, do we? >> we really don't. it may take ten years. the president himself today did an interview in the "new york times" and he compared what he did with iran to nixon going to china. well we didn't know whether nixon going to china was a good thing for almost two decades. we won't know for at least ten years. and that is the measurement being this -- will iran get the bomb? >> chuck todd tonight. thank you. now to the wild

weather pummeling several parts of the country. in kansas a giant ef3 tornado touched down last night, wind speeds up to 165 miles per hour. no injuries reported and only minor damage. it's kentucky though, that's seeing the worst of it. at least two dead. six are missing in catastrophic flooding there. nbc news meteorologist dylan dreyer has more from the ground in eastern kentucky. >> reporter: scenes of destruction in kentucky. a house slamming into a bridge. as torrential rains and high winds battered the eastern part of the state. at least 60 homes damaged or destroyed by flash floods which struck at random. >> you're looking at 500 homes within the communities that are affected. you may find one home's been completely demolished with the structure next to it completely fine. >> reporter: the water roared through a mobile home park pretty much wiping out everything. >> it was all the way to my front porch.

i had a chance to get my names and go out the door. and by the time i got back down everything was gone. >> reporter: o'nishlz say emergency workers were going door to door today looking for people who might still be trapped. almost 20,000 were still without power. the rising waters swept away cars. one vehicle hanging precariously over a creek while others were partially submerged. the storms also hit hard in neighboring indiana. fallen trees blocked roads and damaged property. more than 30,000 homes and businesses were without electricity as crews scrambled to fix power lines. in quincy illinois a state of emergency was declared after winds of 70 miles per hour tore through homes and businesses. back in kentucky the recovery effort goes on tonight with the threat of more rain and more flooding. now, behind me state police are only allowing residents and essential crews into the hardest-hit areas of staffordsville kentucky.

we are also just moments away from another line of severe storms about to hit this area. in fact severe thunderstorm watches and warnings flash floods warnings are in effect all across this region. tonight severe storms are likely from pittsburgh back into memphis with winds up to 70 miles per hour more flash flooding as well. tomorrow the threat is going to be less intense and less widespread but the southeast coast could see the damaging wind gusts and flash flooding tomorrow afternoon. lester? >> dylan dreyer tonight, thank you. chicago authorities have once again named the infamous drug lord known as el chapo as public enemy number one. mexico is offering nearly $4 million in reward money for his capture. and now we're getting our first look at photos reported to be from inside the tunnel he used to escape from prison. we get more from nbc's mark potter. >> reporter: even though joaquin el chapo guzman is considered one of the world's most dangerous drug lords some people in his home state of sinaloa, mexico are praying for him.

this woman says he will feed the hungry, something the government won't do. back at the maximum security prison outside mexico city, a flurry of police activity after the national and local prison directors were fired in the wake of el chapo's brazen tunnel escape. today pictures surfaced in a mexican newspaper claiming to show the tunnel and motorcycle used in guzman's escape. they've not been authenticated by nbc news. this farmer who lived near the house where the tunnel emerged says he never saw anything suspicious but he did see a white pickup truck go to and from the house regularly, with two men and two women inside. this former u.s. agent investigated scores of other tunnels dug by el chapo's drug cartel s he's gone home. >> he's a hollywood hero up there, and they're going to protect him. >> reporter: but with guzman's escape deeply embarrassing the mexican government officials are widening their manhunt. interpol says it's now searching for him in

more than 100 countries. mark potter nbc news near mexico city. we have an incredible story of survival to share with you tonight in the rugged terrain of the pacific northwest a brave teenager recovering from her ordeal after living through a plane crash and fighting her way back to civilization. nbc's hallie jackson has her amazing tale. >> reporter: it's some of the steepest roughest wilderness in the west, and autumn veatch had been flying over the north cascades with her stepgrandparents on her way home to washington from montana when suddenly the beech a-35 went down. rescuers never expected anyone to survive until this stunning 911 call from the 16-year-old. >> we crashed and i was the only one that made it out. >> are you injured at all? >> yeah. i have a lot of burns on my hands and i'm like kind of covered in bruises and scratches and stuff. >> reporter: hurt but

alive. >> it's a miracle. no question about it it's a miracle. >> reporter: for two days search splairngzled looking for wreckage. >> it can be very much like a needle in a haystack. >> reporter: down below no one knew autumn was fighting for her life. the only survivor following a river down stream until she hit a hiking trail steep and difficult. after 48 hours in the woods, wet and cold autumn finally reached a rural highway and was spotted by hikers at the trailhead. they drove her to a convenience store 28 miles away where an employee helped her call 911. >> we're just impressed. she's kind of like a superhero. amazing what she went through, especially at 16. >> reporter: her dad never giving up hope she'd be found. and i can't believe she went through all she did. >> reporter: he brought her the only thick she wanted today -- chick kennen mcnuggets. breakfast at the hospital. and doctors say she is very sore as you might imagine, and exhaust but no one would call her weak

lester. just 16 years old, showing true strength in survival. >> it's remarkable. hallie jackson, thank you. still ahead tonight, parents, listen up. we begin a special series on kids and screen addictions. yes, it is possible to draw them back. we'll tell you about it. also beachgoers take mercy on one of the fiercest creatures of the sea when a great white shark ends up in desperate need of rescue. we are beginning a journey and at this moment we are bound by nothing. technology empowers us to achieve more. it pushes us to go further. to keep track of almost five million athletes, in 170 countries you need a lot of data. up 'til now we've been tracking a lot of data manually. the microsoft cloud allows us to immediately be able to access information, wherever we are. information for an athlete's medical care, or information to track their personal best. special olympics is really about celebrating differences, to create a world where we can accept and appreciate the gifts that we all bring to our communities.

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children and how so many of them seem glued to their smartphones, computers, and game screens. for a lot of kids the digital world can seem much more compelling than the one outside their windows. and that has psychologists very worried about where they're heading. here's nbc's tom costello. >> oh man. >> oh man? you're not excited? >> reporter: with three kids dinner time at the neely home outside atlanta can be loud and silly. >> tomorrow. >> tomorrow? >> reporter: 4-year-old d tyler. but like families across the country they've struggled to keep technology from invading family time. especially with tyler. >> it sounds very strange but i felt like he was -- we were losing him in our family. >> reporter: a straight-a student and star baseball player tyler also loves his video games, ipod and kindle. but he was soon spending three to four hours a day on his devices away from the family. >> he was totally distracted. >> yeah. he was totally distracted. >> reporter: and tyler

is hardly alone. from smartphones and selfies to the internet the average teen spends more than 11 hours a day exposed to a variety of media. a 2012 study found half of all teenagers sending 50 text messages a day, 3,300 texts a month. and the average teen sends 34 texts each night after going to bed. entire families now text at dinner. psychologists warn concentration, sleep, and critical face time all suffer. >> children aren't learning as much of the social emotional intelligence and cues that come along with having conversations. have a listen. >> reporter: even tyler realized he was digitally hooked. >> you start out losing contact with like the friends you that see every day. >> your time is up. >> reporter: finally mom pulled the plug. no devices for a week then limits on screen time. >> i began to see him play with his sister. like it just really ened up my eyes. i would hear so much laughter. >> reporter: the advice from the

experts, limit kids' screen time to two hours a day. there's no substitute for the real world. tom costello, nbc news atlanta. tomorrow in our "disconnected" series how social media is increasing social anxiety. what the pressure to get the most likes is doing to our kids. we're back in a moment with the last stand for a stubborn reminder of last winter. . well, when you have copd it can be hard to breathe. it can be hard to get air out, which can make it hard to get air in. so i talked to my doctor. she said.. doctor: symbicort could help you breathe better, starting within 5 minutes. symbicort doesn't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. symbicort helps provide significant improvement of your lung function. symbicort is for copd, including chronic bronchitis and emphysema. it should not be taken more than twice a day. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems. symbicort may increase your risk of lung infections osteoporosis, and some eye problems. you should tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or

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those of you who remember what it was like waiting for those special family photos to be developed at the neighborhood photomat may appreciate what nasa scientists are going through tonight. they're anxiously waiting to see if the new horizons spacecraft after a 3 billion-mile journey successfully snapped pictures of pluto during its close flyby this morning. they should know later tonight. but already the mission is raising the profile of a little dwarf planet in ways previously unimaginable. it wasn't long ago scientists debated whether it was really even a planet. but suddenly new images like this have made pluto our tiniest

and most distant of planetary neighbors very big deal. [ cheers ] all the hoopla is hard to explain, even for a renowned astrophysicist like neil degrasse tyson. >> i still don't know. pluto has been in our culture. it's a modern planet. it was discovered by an american. >> reporter: previous photos of pluto have been taken from across billions of miles of space. but now 85 years after it was first discovered pluto is getting its close-up. >> now that we have detailed images and even more detail to come you can say oh look at that shape. how did it get that shape? how did it become that reflective? one of the greatest aspects of what it is to do science is to reach a new vista and then discover that you can now ask questions undreamt of before you got there. >> reporter: at new york's american museum of natural history space enthusiasts gathered early this morning to celebrate the historic trip. and as to that

question of whether pluto is a planet or as it's now referred to these days a dwarf planet -- >> pluto revolves around the same sun that we do. >> it does. >> so planet or not a planet? >> it revolves around the same sun but while it does that it actually crosses the orbit of neptune for 20 years out of its 248-year orbit. no other planet does that. that's embarrassing. if you're a planet you should not be crossing other people's orbits. >> reporter: for generations of us who grew up learning about nine planets in order from the sun, pluto was last, the end of the road in a part of this neighborhood that was off limits. and now the question of what's really out there is finally coming into clear focus. nasa says the "new horizons" mission is the first to explore worlds so far from earth and adds this mission completes its initial survey of our solar system. that will do it for us on this tuesday night. i'm lester holt. for, thank you for watching and good night.

people have a very strong opinion about caitlyn jenner. but i think -- >> these seating cards are very strategic. >> the countdown to caitlyn's espy honor. i'm billy bush from the seats to the stage we've got the down-to-the wire adjustments.