For the first time ever, a crew of International Space Station (ISS) astronauts is about to return to Earth early due to a medical issue.
Crew-11, which includes NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, will depart from the ISS no earlier than 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday, according to NASA. They were supposed to remain aboard the space station until mid-February, but the agency opted to bring them home early after one of them fell ill on January 7.
NASA has not disclosed the name of the ailing astronaut nor any specific details about their condition, but agency officials have repeatedly said that they are stable. Mission pilot Fincke reiterated NASA’s assurances in a LinkedIn post on Sunday.
“First and foremost, we are all OK,” he wrote. “Everyone on board is stable, safe, and well cared for. This was a deliberate decision to allow the right medical evaluations to happen on the ground, where the full range of diagnostic capability exists. It’s the right call, even if it’s a bit bittersweet.”
Crew-11, prepare for departure
Crew-11 is currently expected to splash down off the coast of California at approximately 3:40 a.m. ET on Thursday, but this is subject to change as NASA is actively monitoring weather and sea conditions in the splashdown zone. Agency officials will announce a more concrete time and location closer to Crew-11’s undocking.
Right now, the four astronauts are busy preparing for their flight back to Earth, checking the fit and operability of their spacesuits and packing up their personal items. At the same time, they have been keeping up with day-to-day space station operations, including spacesuit maintenance and research tasks.
When they depart, the Crew-11 astronauts will leave behind Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev and NASA astronaut Chris Williams, who will remain aboard the ISS to complete their six-month mission that began in late November. On Monday afternoon, space station commander Fincke handed his authority over to Kud-Sverchkov.
“I thank you all very much for your hard work, for your assistance, and for all the fantastic science and exploration that we worked on together. It was really fun,” Fincke told his fellow astronauts during the change of command ceremony. “Some of the jokes weren’t so good, but I’ll keep trying.”
Before this medical issue arose, Fincke was getting ready to suit up for his 10th spacewalk alongside Cardman. The EVA would have tied Fincke with Peggy Whitson for the most spacewalks by a NASA astronaut.
Tentative return mission timeline
NASA will provide live coverage of Crew-11’s return flight, including the hatch closure, Crew Dragon’s undocking, and the spacecraft’s reentry. The agency has not yet shared links to its coverage, but you will likely be able to watch via NASA+ or the agency’s YouTube channel.
A loose timeline of the Crew-11 return flight coverage—providing NASA sticks to the current plan—is as follows (all times are in ET):
Wednesday, January 14
- 3:00 p.m. – Hatch closure coverage begins
- 3:30 p.m. – Hatch closing
- 4:45 p.m. – Undocking coverage begins
- 5:00 p.m. – Undocking
Thursday, January 15
- 2:15 a.m. – Return coverage begins
- 2:50 a.m. – Deorbit burn
- 3:40 a.m. – Splashdown
- 5:45 a.m. – Return to Earth media news conference
A SpaceX recovery vessel will be waiting to retrieve the Dragon capsule and its crew from the splashdown zone. As always, medical personnel will be aboard this ship to examine the astronauts after they exit the capsule.
NASA has been preparing for this scenario since the first ISS crew launched 25 years ago. The fact that this is the first medical evacuation the agency has had to perform is a testament to the space station’s safety. Statistically, such evacs should be happening about once every three years, according to NASA’s Chief Health and Medical Officer, Dr. James Polk.
Even so, Crew-11’s early return underscores why NASA builds redundancy and contingency planning into every human spaceflight mission and will serve as an important real-world test of the agency’s evacuation protocol.
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