NASA to bring Crew-11 astronauts home early after medical issue aboard ISS
NASA says one Crew-11 astronaut is stable after a medical issue aboard the International Space Station, prompting the first medical evacuation in the station's 25 year history.
For the first time in the 25-year history of the International Space Station, NASA has moved to bring astronauts back to Earth after a medical issue aboard the station.
NASA will bring home the Crew-11 astronauts early after a crew member experienced a medical issue aboard the International Space Station this week.
NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman were set to exit the station’s Quest airlock at 8 a.m. EST Thursday for a six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk. However, NASA announced Wednesday that it was postponing the spacewalk due to a medical issue involving one of the astronauts.
Expedition 73 poses for a portrait after welcoming four new crew members shortly after they arrived on a SpaceX Dragon crew spacecraft as part of NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 mission. In the front row from left, are the newest crewmates Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui. (Image: NASA)
On Thursday, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said the Crew-11 astronauts will return home in the “coming days.”
NASA's chief health and medical officer Dr. James Polk said the medical evacuation is a first in the 25-year history of the International Space Station. Polk said the astronaut needs to be evaluated with equipment on Earth for a full diagnosis.
NASA is not revealing which member of the Crew-11 astronauts suffered the medical emergency due to medical privacy. Polk said the medical event had nothing to do with preparations for the spacewalk and was not an injury.
Fincke and Cardman make up half of the four-member Crew-11 mission, which arrived at the ISS in August aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The other Crew-11 members are JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.
The postponed spacewalk would have been the first for Cardman and the 10th for Fincke, which would have tied him for the most spacewalks by a NASA astronaut.
Another spacewalk planned for Jan. 15 will likely be delayed due to the schedule change. The astronauts assigned to that EVA have not yet been announced.
Isaacman said NASA is evaluating earlier launch opportunities for the Crew-12 launch with four astronauts previously planned for no earlier than mid-February.
The Crew-12 astronauts include NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev.
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