NASA Announces Return Date for ISS Astronauts After Medical Evacuation Announcement

NASA Announces Return Date for Evacuating ISS Astronauts

By Jackie Flynn Mogensen edited by Claire Cameron

NASA has revealed the return date for four International Space Station (ISS) crew members who are being evacuated from the station after one fell ill with an unknown condition.

The crew are set to begin their return to Earth no earlier than 5 p.m. EST on Wednesday, Jan. 14. The SpaceX capsule is then expected to splash down off the coast of California at about 3:40 a.m. EST on Thursday, Jan. 15.

The announcement follows the space agency’s Thursday decision to cut the Crew-11 mission short after an unidentified member of the crew experienced an undisclosed “medical concern.” The medical evacuation marks a first in the space station’s 25-year history.

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The exact timing for the return depends on weather and could change. In a statement, NASA said mission managers are monitoring sea conditions in the spacecraft recovery area. “NASA and SpaceX will select a specific splashdown time and location closer to the Crew-11 spacecraft undocking,” the agency said in a statement.

NASA has not revealed the extent of the sick crew member’s medical issue. When revealing the decision to return the crew early on January 8, Isaacman said the problem was a “serious medical condition” but described the affected crew member as “stable.”

Crew-11 includes two NASA astronauts, the mission’s commander Zena Cardman and its pilot Mike Fincke,as well as Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov. They had been expected to remain on the ISS until mid-February, when the replacement crew, Crew-12, are still anticipated to arrive.

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