SpaceX brings back 4 NASA astronauts to Earth in first-ever medical evacuation from ISS

NEW YORK: Elon Musk-led SpaceX on Thursday successfully brought back four NASA astronauts to Earth in the first-ever medical evacuation from the International Space Station (ISS). NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov returned to Earth at 12:41 a.m. PST (2:11 pm IST) aboard SpaceX’s Dragon capsule. “Welcome home, Crew-11! At 3:41 am ET (0841 UTC), the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft splashed down off the coast of San Diego, California,” NASA said in a post on social media platform X.

“Dragon and NASA’s Crew-11 return to Earth, splashing down off the coast of California,” added SpaceX.

The astronauts concluded a more than five-month mission aboard the ISS, and their early departure leaves just three — NASA’s Chris Williams, cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev — on the space station. Another crew of four should arrive next month. “All four crew members will be transported to a local hospital for additional evaluation, taking advantage of medical resources on Earth to provide the best care possible,” NASA said on X. On January 8, the US space agency postponed its first scheduled spacewalk of 2026 with Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman — over ‘medical concern’ with an astronaut. (IANS)

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