NASA is considering the possibility of an early return of the Crew-11 mission astronauts from the International Space Station due to health issues with one of them.
Health issues with one of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) may be serious enough for NASA to prematurely conclude the Crew-11 mission, reports Space.
On Wednesday, January 7, NASA announced that the planned spacewalk outside the ISS, scheduled for Thursday, January 8, has been canceled and postponed to an unknown date. Astronauts NASA's Zena Cardman and Michael Fink were set to conduct a 6.5-hour spacewalk to perform necessary maintenance work on the orbital outpost.
NASA's statement indicated that the scheduled spacewalk was canceled due to identified health problems with one of the Crew-11 mission astronauts. However, the name of this astronaut was not disclosed due to medical confidentiality. NASA also did not provide details about his or her condition.
On Thursday, January 8, NASA provided new information regarding the situation on the ISS. It was reported that the health condition of one of the ISS crew members remains stable. But this does not mean that everything has returned to normal. The U.S. space agency stated that it is considering the possibility of prematurely concluding the Crew-11 mission, which means the astronauts may return to Earth earlier than planned.
The Crew-11 mission crew arrived at the ISS on August 2, 2025, aboard the SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft. The astronauts NASA's Zena Cardman and Michael Fink, along with Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and Russian astronaut Oleg Platonov, arrived at the space station. They were scheduled to return home in early February. Therefore, a potential return of the astronauts home in the coming days, if NASA makes such a decision, will not significantly shorten the duration of the Crew-11 mission.
Currently, there are three more astronauts on the ISS: Christopher Williams from NASA and Russians Sergey Kudy-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikayev, who arrived in orbit aboard the Russian Soyuz spacecraft on November 27.
As for the spacewalk scheduled for January 8, it would have been Cardman's first such event and Fink's tenth. To date, five American astronauts have completed 10 spacewalks each: Bob Behnken, Stephen Bowen, Chris Cassidy, Michael Lopez-Alegria, and Peggy Whitson. The world record for the most spacewalks, 16, belongs to Russian astronaut Anatoly Solovyev.
Before the emergency situation on the ISS arose, NASA had planned another spacewalk for January 15. It is currently unknown whether this date will be maintained or changed.
Leave a comment