By AJ Willingham, CNN

(CNN) -- By AJ Willingham, CNN

(CNN) -- Despite international tensions and political turmoil, Mother Nature still knows how to steal the show. Here's what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and Out the Door. You can also get "5 Things You Need to Know Today" delivered to your inbox daily. Sign up here.

1. Eclipse

Happy Eclipse Day! In case you haven't heard, today is the Eclipse of the Century, a total solar eclipse that will cross the US from coast to coast. Be sure to check the latest eclipse weather forecast to avoid being "clouded-out." Hopefully you secured a pair of solar eclipse glasses and know how to watch the eclipse safely.

CNN.com/Eclipse is your best place to find out everything you need to know about the celestial marvel. Don't worry if you can't make it to the path of totality, we've got you covered:

From 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., be sure to click this link on any of your devices to watch the entire event unfold live in virtual reality. You can also watch in the CNN App, on CNN's Facebook page, or on the Samsung VR app on the Gear VR headset.

Biding time until the big event? Here are some other eclipse stories for your viewing pleasure (no glasses needed):

Your "No Stupid Questions" guide to the eclipse

How to take the best eclipse photos

2. Afghanistan

President Donald Trump will unveil his new plan for US involvement in Afghanistan, and a potential escalation of the nation's longest war. He'll be asking Americans to trust him on his new strategy while exercising a president's most somber duty, a decision on waging war. The Presidential address is at 9 p.m. ET.

3. North Korea

Another week, another round of discomfiting quotes from North Korea. The nation announced yesterday that the upcoming US-South Korea military exercises are "reckless behavior driving the situation into the uncontrollable phase of a nuclear war."

Pyongyang also declared that its army can target the US anytime, and neither Guam, Hawaii nor the US mainland can "dodge the merciless strike."

4. US Navy

Ten US Navy sailors are missing after a US Navy guided-missile destroyer collided with an oil tanker east of Singapore early this morning. This is the fourth accident in Asian waters involving a US warship in 2017. One of those was fatal.

The Navy's 7th Fleet said the USS John S. McCain collided with the merchant vessel Alnic MC while the destroyer was making its way to a port visit in Singapore.

Military experts said the latest incident is not a good look for the Navy and its training practices, and will likely lead to a serious shakeup among the Navy's leadership.

5. Confederate statues

Statues commemorating Confederate forces from the Civil War are dropping like flies after the Charlottesville protests inspired local governments and activists to renew conversations about the statues' public purposes.

The latest to go? Four statues at the University of Texas in Austin were removed in the dead of night over the weekend. There may be more to come, too. Cities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Texas, Virginia and Washington have all considered removing statues from public spaces.

BREAKFAST BROWSE

People are talking about these. Read up. Join in.

Comedian Jerry Lewis has passed away at 91

The slapstick-loving icon rose to fame in the 1950s and '60s.

Robotic crib will rock your baby to sleep

Because if there's one place robots belong, it's in an infant's crucial development stages. In totally unrelated news...

Elon Musk calls for a global ban on killer robots

2017 is wild, y'all.

The White House arts committee puts subtle message in their resignation

And by "subtle," we mean "extremely, incredibly not subtle at all."

QUOTE OF THE DAY "May the shadow of the moon fall on a world at peace."

ABC News' Frank Reynolds, musing about the world of 2017 while reporting on the eclipse of 1979.

AND FINALLY ...

You know this was coming...

And we are not sorry at all.