After the first-ever medical evacuation of the International Space Station, NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.
AN UNPRECEDENTED MEDICAL EVACUATION
On 15th January 2026, the SpaceX Crew-11 mission returned home after more than five months aboard the International Space Station (ISS) – a hub of scientific discovery, international partnership, and technological innovation.
During the 167-day mission, four crew members – Zena Cardman, Mike Fincke, Kimiya Yui, and Oleg Platonov – travelled almost 71 million miles, orbited Earth more than 2,670 times, and completed hundreds of science experiments and technology demonstrations to advance human exploration.
The astronauts arrived on the ISS on 1st August last year expecting to complete a standard six-and-a-half month stay, due to come home in mid-February.
However, following the last-minute cancellation of a scheduled spacewalk for Cardman and Fincke, the mission came to an end a month earlier than planned because of a serious medical concern affecting one of the crew members.
For privacy reasons, NASA did not disclose which of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission’s four astronauts was experiencing the medical issue or describe the nature of it.
This was the first time astronauts have been evacuated from the ISS due to a medical issue since the space station was put into Earth’s orbit in 1998.
Indeed, the incident is unprecedented in the history of the ISS, which has been permanently crewed for more than a quarter of a century. Incidentally, SpaceX Crew-11 celebrated the milestone 25th anniversary of continuous human presence aboard the orbiting laboratory in November.
The crew members safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California and disembarked the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft after an almost 11-hour journey, before undergoing standard post-flight reconditioning and evaluations in Houston, Texas.
MEDICAL TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT
All NASA astronauts undergo basic medical training, such as how to stitch a wound, give an injection, or extract a tooth, and have regular health checks and contact with a team of doctors closely monitoring them on the ground.
The space agency additionally maintains a robust pharmacy with a substantial supply of medicines and a suite of medical equipment onboard the ISS to treat various conditions and injuries, including a defibrillator for any heart issues and portable ultrasound devices.
Communication systems on the ISS also let doctors talk privately to astronauts in space, assess their condition, and advise treatment, much like a secure video or phone consultation with a GP.
However, if a medical emergency requires a return to Earth, as in the case of SpaceX Crew-11, the astronauts come back in the spacecraft they launched aboard to receive urgent medical care.
The ISS does not have a doctor on board, but space experts say they will need to travel on missions in future as more and more humans venture into space, including for tourism and the possible occupation of the Moon or even Mars.
A RARE OCCURRENCE
Thankfully, serious medical emergencies are a rare occurrence in space, but it’s not unheard of for crew members to become unwell.
The most common problems include motion sickness, headaches and pains, dental emergencies, and even kidney stones.
Space missions have ended early due to health issues just twice before, first in 1985 when Soviet cosmonaut Vladimir Vasyutin and his colleagues retuned from a mission to the Salyut 7 space station four months ahead of schedule because of a urological issue.
Then, in 1987, another Soviet cosmonaut, Aleksandr Laveykin, left the Mir space station early due to a heart arrhythmia.
The ISS evacuation was a test of NASA’s procedures for dealing with medical issues, and by all accounts, it passed.
