BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Crew-11 is on its way back to Earth after undocking from the International Space Station Wednesday evening, wrapping up a shortened mission in orbit.
NASA says the early return was prompted by an undisclosed medical issue involving one crew member.
The agency has said the situation is stable, but serious enough to warrant what it’s calling the first controlled medical evacuation from the space station.
NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov are expected to splash down off the coast of California early Thursday morning. Florida Tech aerospace expert Dr. Don Platt says once the capsule is recovered, teams will move quickly to assist the crew while also protecting the privacy of the affected astronaut.
Crew-11’s early departure comes before the scheduled February arrival of Crew-12, leaving two cosmonauts and one NASA astronaut, Chris Williams, aboard the station. Platt says the reduced crew size could temporarily limit research and delay some maintenance work.
NASA reports Crew-11 undocked from the station’s Harmony module at 5:24 p.m. Eastern. The crew is expected to splash down around 3:41 a.m. Eastern off the coast of San Diego.
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