Space & Satellites
NASA SpaceX Crew-11 Early Return Due to Medical Evacuation in 2026
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 will return early from the ISS on January 14, 2026, for a medical evacuation due to diagnostic limitations onboard.
This article is based on official press releases and mission updates from NASA.
Expedition 74 is preparing for a significant operational shift aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as the four members of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission prepare to return to Earth. According to official updates from NASA, the crew is scheduled to undock on Wednesday, January 14, 2026, marking the conclusion of their five-and-a-half-month stay in orbit.
This departure represents a historic moment for the orbiting laboratory. Mission reports indicate this is the first time in the station’s 25-year history that a full crew is returning early specifically to facilitate a medical evacuation. While NASA has confirmed the affected astronaut is in stable condition, the agency determined that the station’s medical facilities were insufficient for the necessary diagnostic workup.
The “homebound quartet”, Commander Zena Cardman, Pilot Mike Fincke, and Mission Specialists Kimiya Yui and Oleg Platonov, spent Tuesday finalizing cargo packing and reviewing descent procedures. Their departure will leave a reduced crew of three on board the station until the arrival of Crew-12, currently targeted for February.
The return journey for Crew-11 will begin with the autonomous undocking of the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft. NASA mission controllers have set the undocking time for 5:05 p.m. EST on Wednesday, January 14, 2026. The spacecraft will detach from the space-facing port of the ISS Harmony module to begin its descent.
Following undocking, the crew will execute a series of deorbit burns to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere. Splashdown is targeted for approximately 3:40 a.m. EST on Thursday, January 15 (12:40 a.m. local Pacific time). Recovery teams from SpaceX will be stationed in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California to retrieve the capsule and crew immediately upon landing.
In the days leading up to the departure, the crew has been heavily focused on logistics. According to a blog post by NASA’s Mark Garcia, the crew spent Tuesday “packing cargo, reviewing return to Earth procedures, and transferring hardware.”
Notably, mission reports highlight that the crew transferred standard emergency equipment from the Dragon capsule to the ISS prior to departure. This unusual step ensures that the remaining three crew members of Expedition 74 maintain ample supplies during the interim period before the next crew arrival. The decision to bring Crew-11 home ahead of schedule was driven by a medical issue that arose on January 7, 2026. While NASA has maintained strict medical privacy regarding the identity of the affected crew member, agency officials have emphasized that the situation is not an emergency and the astronaut remains stable.
According to NASA’s Chief Health and Medical Officer, Dr. J.D. Polk, the decision to return was based on diagnostic limitations aboard the ISS. While the station is equipped with a robust pharmacy and basic medical suite, it lacks advanced imaging hardware, such as CT or MRI capabilities, which are required for a full evaluation of the specific condition.
This medical event also necessitated the cancellation of a spacewalk originally scheduled for January 8, which would have seen astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke preparing the station for new solar arrays.
The departure of Crew-11 leaves the International Space Station with a significantly reduced population. Following the change of command ceremony on Monday, January 12, command of the station was transferred from NASA astronaut Mike Fincke to Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Kud-Sverchkov.
During the ceremony, Fincke acknowledged the heavy workload the remaining crew would face:
“It is bittersweet. We are leaving you with a lot of work, but we know you are going to do super well.”
Mike Fincke, NASA Astronaut and Crew-11 Pilot
For the next several weeks, the station will be operated by a “skeleton crew” of just three individuals:
This transition leaves Chris Williams as the sole American astronaut aboard the station until the arrival of SpaceX Crew-12.
The rapid turnaround of the Crew-11 mission highlights the evolving maturity of commercial spaceflight and international cooperation. While early mission terminations are rare, the ability of NASA, SpaceX, and their international partners (JAXA and Roscosmos) to coordinate a safe, unplanned return within a week demonstrates a high level of operational resilience. Furthermore, the specific citation of “diagnostic limitations” as the primary driver for return suggests that as missions become longer and travel further from Earth (such as to Mars), the integration of advanced medical imaging technology into spacecraft design will likely become a critical priority. For now, the proximity of Earth allows for this “precautionary measure,” ensuring astronaut safety remains the paramount operational rule.
NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 Set for Historic Medical Evacuation and Return
Mission Timeline and Return Details
Preparation and Cargo Transfer
Context: The Medical Decision
Expedition 74 and the “Skeleton Crew”
AirPro News Analysis
Sources
Photo Credit: NASA