Iconic three-word phrase uttered by commander immediately after bringing 'stranded' NASA astronauts home to Earth
There might just be a new entry into the pantheon of iconic space adjacent phrases, as the NASA commander that brought back the astronauts stranded upon the International Space Station uttered a truthful three-word phrase after landing back on Earth.
Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore have been at the heart of most space-related conversations for over half a year now, as their initial eight day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) was extended to a 286 day stay.
At the heart of the unprecedented delay were technical faults on multiple fronts, as not only did their Boeing Starliner craft have to return to Earth unmanned, but the SpaceX ship set to bring them back also suffered issues that delayed proceedings up until the very last minute.
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US President Donald Trump has made bringing the pair back home a top priority within the first few months of his administration, urging SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to 'go get' the pair and putting the blame for their delayed rescue on the Biden administration.
Williams and Wilmore have thanked both Musk and Trump for their support in bringing them back, and they've now finally returned to Earth, landing into the ocean off the coast of Florida last night.
Alongside the pair were Aleksandr Gorbunov and Nick Hague, who flew up to the ISS as part of the SpaceX Crew-9 mission last September, and it was the return mission's commander Hague who uttered three now-iconic words after landing.
As reported by the Telegraph, an official spoke to the four astronauts as soon as they landed, declaring: "Nick, Alex, Butch, Suni, on behalf of SpaceX, welcome home."
Replying to this, Hague uttered a wonderful three words: "What a ride!"
Adding to this, he also illustrated that "I see a capsule full of grins ear to ear," and it's easy to understand why all four passengers would be unbelievably happy to finally be back home.
Pertaining to the ride itself, it took them roughly 17 hours to travel from the International Space Station, despite it 'only' being around 408 km (254 miles) away from Earth.
While they were on board the ISS though, it's estimated that they had circled around Earth 4.576 times, travelling around 195 million kilometers (121 million miles) in the process across their 286 day stay, which works out at around 681,818 kilometers per day, or roughly 16 times the Earth's circumference.
They were no doubt delighted to finally return from space, especially as seeing their families again was a top priority, but unfortunately they won't be able to instantly switch back into 'normal' life after such a lengthy stay in space.
Williams and Wilmore were immediately stretchered off to a medical facility where they will now undergo a 'brutal' six-week physical rehabilitation program, despite conducting rigorous exercise routines while in space.
This is due to the effect of low gravity conditions on the human body, causing muscles to work far less and thus significantly reducing their strength.