The four astronauts involved in a historic medical evacuation from the International Space Station (ISS) will be returning home in less than a week, NASA has announced.
Space agency officials revealed that Crew-11 is scheduled to leave the station no earlier than 5 PM ET on Wednesday, January 14, which is approximately one month earlier than their originally planned departure.
The SpaceX Dragon capsule tasked with bringing the astronauts home is expected to splash down off the coast of California around 3:40 AM on Thursday morning.
This sudden exit was prompted by what new NASA administrator Jared Isaacman characterised as a “serious medical condition” affecting one of the astronauts, necessitating further treatment on Earth.
“Mission managers continue monitoring conditions in the recovery area, as the undocking of the SpaceX Dragon depends on spacecraft readiness, recovery team readiness, weather, sea states, and other factors,” NASA stated in a press release on Friday night.
While the agency did not disclose which astronaut experienced the emergency or the specifics of the medical issue, officials indicated they were “erring on the side of caution” by evacuating the entire Crew-11 team as swiftly as possible.
Crew-11 consists of four astronauts: NASA’s Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.
NASA’s chief medical officer, Dr. James Polk, reported that the ailing astronaut is currently in “stable” condition, clarifying that their medical issue did not arise from an accident on the station or any activity related to their work in space.
More details will follow as the situation develops.
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