The SpaceX Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will be cut short and the astronauts will return to Earth ahead of schedule, as one of them needs medical care, NASA Director Jared Isaacman has announced.

The four-person team has been conducting research aboard the ISS since August and had been expected to remain until next month, following a handover period after the arrival of the Crew-12 mission.

“Yesterday, January 7th, a single crew member on board the station experienced a medical situation and is now stable,” NASA Director Jared Isaacman said in a briefing on Thursday.

“I’ve come to the decision that it’s in the best interest of our astronauts to return Crew-11 ahead of their planned departure,” he said, without elaborating which team member had the medical issue, citing privacy concerns.

NASA Chief Health and Medical Officer Dr. J.D. Polk noted that “this is not an emergent evacuation,” but said that the agency wanted to use its “full suite” of medical equipment to diagnose the astronaut once they return to Earth.

According to Isaacman, the US agency is currently “evaluating their timeline” for earlier launch opportunities for the Crew-12 mission, which had been scheduled for mid-February.

The Crew-11 members – Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke and Japan’s Kimiya Yui – are expected to splash down off the coast of California on Thursday, pending favorable weather conditions, the US space agency said.

In the meantime, the ISS will be maintained by Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev, as well as NASA astronaut Chris Williams, who launched to the station aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-28 in November.

Roscosmos and NASA agreed to extend space cooperation and joint operations aboard the ISS in July, ahead of the Crew-11 mission’s launch.

The space station, the largest ever built, has orbited our planet since 1998. It has continued to serve as a unique international scientific research platform despite years of political tensions over the Ukraine conflict.

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The Crew-11 astronauts, including members from Roscosmos, NASA, and Japan, are scheduled to splash down off the California coast pending weather conditions.","bullets",[200,201,202,203,204,205,206],"SpaceX Crew-11 mission to the ISS is being shortened due to an astronaut's medical issue.","The astronaut is stable, but the mission will end early for further medical evaluation on Earth.","The early return is not an emergency evacuation, according to NASA's Chief Health and Medical Officer.","NASA is reassessing the launch timeline for the subsequent Crew-12 mission.","The Crew-11 members are expected to return to Earth on Thursday.","The ISS will be maintained by a reduced crew of Russian and NASA astronauts.","Space cooperation between Russia and NASA aboard the ISS continues despite political tensions.","persons",[209,210,211,212,213,214,215,216,217],"Jared Isaacman","Oleg Platonov","Zena Cardman","Mike Fincke","Kimiya Yui","Sergey Kud-Sverchkov","Sergei Mikaev","Chris Williams","J.D. 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Polk noted that _“this is not an emergent evacuation,”_ but said that the agency wanted to use its _“full suite”_ of medical equipment to diagnose the astronaut once they return to Earth.\n\nAccording to Isaacman, the US agency is currently _“evaluating their timeline”_ for earlier launch opportunities for the Crew-12 mission, which had been scheduled for mid-February.\n\nThe Crew-11 members – Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke and Japan’s Kimiya Yui – are expected to splash down off the coast of California on Thursday, pending favorable weather conditions, the US space agency said.\n\nIn the meantime, the ISS will be maintained by Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev, as well as NASA astronaut Chris Williams, who launched to the station aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-28 in November.\n\nRoscosmos and NASA [agreed](https://www.rt.com/news/622347-russia-us-space-cooperation-iss/) to extend space cooperation and joint operations aboard the ISS in July, ahead of the Crew-11 mission’s launch.\n\nThe space station, the largest ever built, has orbited our planet since 1998. It has continued to serve as a unique international scientific research platform despite years of political tensions over the Ukraine conflict.","freeMarkdown","kind1EventId","kind30023EventId","a6eef29d38108f93ccc5aa4793752dc982074a78a58a9e9243044b4f164f4d26","kind30023",{"_14":292,"_266":295,"_268":296,"_62":297,"_282":281,"_172":311,"_284":285},"84c734028a85477ca8f177427aaaf55cb49877931b2fb59b7b566a1f8f1a8ce88c326e2571eedffaf5b5a4c18e4b7fe6da5bbe18ee8b3d8fae6940f1c224cdc7",30023,[298,301,302,305,306,308,309,310],[299,300],"r","https://russia.layer3.press/articles/59c191e9-147e-45ea-b310-c82aa522dac1",[26,161],[303,304],"published_at","1768059108",[30,165],[307,156],"d",[196,162],[277,278],[280,281,25],"Astronaut’s health issues force NASA to cut mission short\nThe SpaceX Crew-11 mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will conclude early due to a medical situation experienced by one of the four astronauts. NASA Director Jared Isaacman announced the decision, emphasizing it's not an emergency evacuation but aims to utilize comprehensive medical resources upon return. The Crew-11 astronauts, including members from Roscosmos, NASA, and Japan, are scheduled to splash down off the California coast pending weather conditions.\n - SpaceX Crew-11 mission to the ISS is being shortened due to an astronaut's medical issue.\n - The astronaut is stable, but the mission will end early for further medical evaluation on Earth.\n - The early return is not an emergency evacuation, according to NASA's Chief Health and Medical Officer.\n - NASA is reassessing the launch timeline for the subsequent Crew-12 mission.\n - The Crew-11 members are expected to return to Earth on Thursday.\n - The ISS will be maintained by a reduced crew of Russian and NASA astronauts.\n - Space cooperation between Russia and NASA aboard the ISS continues despite political tensions.\n","publishedToNostr","htmlContentKind30023","

The four-person team has been conducting research aboard the ISS since August and had been expected to remain until next month, following a handover period after the arrival of the Crew-12 mission.

“Yesterday, January 7th, a single crew member on board the station experienced a medical situation and is now stable,” NASA Director Jared Isaacman said in a briefing on Thursday.

According to Isaacman, the US agency is currently “evaluating their timeline” for earlier launch opportunities for the Crew-12 mission, which had been scheduled for mid-February.

Roscosmos and NASA agreed to extend space cooperation and joint operations aboard the ISS in July, ahead of the Crew-11 mission’s launch.

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