In an unprecedented move for the United States space programme, four astronauts have begun their journey back to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) following a medical issue, marking Nasa's first-ever medical evacuation from the orbiting laboratory.
A Deliberate, Non-Emergency Return
The crew, comprising American astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, and Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, undocked from the ISS at 2220 GMT on Wednesday aboard their SpaceX Dragon capsule. Their mission, which began in early August, has been cut approximately one month short.
Nasa officials have been clear that this is not an emergency return. The space agency has declined to specify which crew member is affected or detail the medical condition, citing privacy, but confirmed the individual "was and continues to be in stable condition", according to spokesperson Rob Navias.
"This was a deliberate decision to allow the right medical evaluations to happen on the ground, where the full range of diagnostic capability exists," explained pilot Mike Fincke in a social media post. "It's the right call, even if it's a bit bittersweet."
Historical Context and Station Operations
While computer models have long predicted a medical evacuation from the ISS roughly every three years, this event is a first in Nasa's 65-year history of human spaceflight. The Russian (and former Soviet) programme has experienced similar situations, most notably in 1985 when cosmonaut Vladimir Vasyutin's serious illness forced an early return from the Salyut 7 station.
The departure of the Crew-11 quartet leaves three crew members on board: American astronaut Chris Williams and Russian cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev, who arrived in November. Nasa stated that until a replacement SpaceX crew arrives, all spacewalks—both routine and emergency—will be suspended, as they require a full crew for backup support inside the station.
Cooperation and Crew Resilience
The incident underscores the ongoing multinational cooperation aboard the ISS, a partnership involving Europe, Japan, the US, and Russia that has seen the station continuously inhabited since 2000. The evacuation also highlights the enduring, if isolated, area of bilateral cooperation between the United States and Russia, whose agencies take turns transporting each other's astronauts.
Before undocking, astronaut Zena Cardman reflected on the crew's response. "Our timing of this departure is unexpected," she said, "but what was not surprising to me was how well this crew came together as a family to help each other and just take care of each other." Senior Nasa official Amit Kshatriya praised the crew, who are trained for such scenarios, for their handling of the situation.
The SpaceX Dragon capsule is scheduled to splash down off the coast of California at around 0840 GMT on Thursday, concluding this historic chapter in orbital medicine and crew safety.
