Weird life in space, accused Gilgo Beach killer, brutal kitchen culture: Catch up on the day’s stories
By Daniel Wine, CNN
👋 Welcome to 5 Things PM! In a shocking turn of events, accused Gilgo Beach serial killer Rex Heuermann pleaded guilty to the murders of eight women. He admitted strangling them and discarding their remains on Long Island in a case that haunted the community for decades.
Here’s what else you might have missed during your busy day.
5 things
1️⃣ Out of this world
Sleeping upside down. Collecting astronaut spit. Toilet troubles. These are just a few of the highlights from the Artemis II mission, which shows life in space is even weirder than we thought. 🚀 Sign up for the Countdown newsletter.
2️⃣ Making gains
Democrats lost by 12 percentage points in Marjorie Taylor Greene’s old US House district in Georgia. They still had one of their best election nights in recent memory. CNN’s Aaron Blake explains why.
3️⃣ ‘Roll up your sleeves’
Although AI coding tools have stoked fears that the technology will replace software engineers, jobs in the field are growing. As companies pump out more software, there’s increasing demand for workers.
4️⃣ Brutal kitchen culture
Chef Eric Ripert reveals how his intensity and temper in the kitchen once crossed a line. Watch his intimate conversation with chef José Andrés on “The 1 on 1” with CNN All Access.
5️⃣ No. 2
About 40% of Americans say their daily lives are disrupted by their bowel health. A Harvard doctor boiled this basic bodily function down to the three Ps.
Watch this
🎧 ‘It’s been beautiful’: When EVAN GIIA found out she was pregnant, she worried about the impact on her career. The Brooklyn-based DJ and vocalist explains why she kept performing well into her third trimester.
Top headlines
- Oil plunges, Dow sees its best day in a year after US-Iran ceasefire, but ‘hurdles remain’
- ‘Ketamine Queen’ sentenced in Matthew Perry case, highlighting a new era of accountability for drug dealers
- Justice Department says Bondi won’t appear for Epstein deposition now that she’s no longer attorney general
Check this out
🇨🇦 A chill in tourism: Hotels and other businesses along Florida’s east coast are seeing a drop in visitors from Canada. They’re taking a hit financially.
For CNN subscribers
- How a trash-talking, meme-posting great-grandmother pulled Virginia into a fight that could define the midterms
- Among the 600,000 deported by the Trump administration: an Army vet who lived in the US lawfully for decades
- Trump’s Tylenol claims spark lawsuits, research backlash
Quiz time
⛳ The Masters golf tournament gets underway this week. Where is it played?
A. Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida
B. Southampton, New York
C. Augusta, Georgia
D. Pebble Beach, California
⬇️ Scroll down for the answer.
Thanks for reading
✅ Most popular in yesterday’s newsletter: An eclectic, bipartisan group suddenly calls for removing Trump using the 25th Amendment
🧠 Quiz answer: C. The Masters is played at Augusta National Golf Club in Georgia.
👋 We’ll see you tomorrow.
📧 Check out all of CNN’s newsletters.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2026 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
Today’s edition of 5 Things PM was edited and produced by CNN’s Kimberly Richardson and Chris Good.