“It’s not rocket science, but this is rocket science,” retired U.S. Navy Capt. Winston Scott, a former astronaut, told Newsmax on Tuesday, praising SpaceX’s mission to bring two NASA astronauts back to Earth from the International Space Station.

After nine months in space, Sunita Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore returned home, marking the end of a mission originally scheduled to last just eight days. The astronauts, stranded at the space station due to thruster issues with their Boeing Starliner, splashed down in the Gulf at precisely 5:57 p.m. ET aboard a SpaceX capsule.

“Everything goes right down to the second. Everything is down to the second. Your time on target is plus or minus three seconds,” Scott told “Rob Schmitt Tonight.”

Read more at Newsmax© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.