NASA has confirmed that SpaceX Crew-11 will return early from the International Space Station (ISS) due to concerns about the health of one of the four team members.
The unprecedented decision was announced on January 8, 2026, followed by a news conference involving incoming NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman.
In an update posted on ISS’s social media accounts, a statement said: “NASA announced its decision to return the agency’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission to Earth from the International Space Station earlier than originally planned as teams monitor a medical concern with a crew member currently living and working aboard the orbital laboratory.”
NASA is now reviewing its plans for scheduling the return date and looking at the options available to advance launch opportunities for the Crew-12 mission.
“The agency anticipates a decision on a target Crew-11 return date in the coming days,” NASA said.
Retired Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield noted that it was the “first time in the 25-year history of the International Space Station we’ve had a serious enough medical emergency in space to bring a crew home early”.
Robert Pearlman, editor of website collectSpace.com, told NPR that a decision to return a crew to Earth early due to health concerns has never happened before in NASA’s 65-year human spaceflight history.
There are currently seven people onboard ISS, leaving only three to manage the space station once the evacuation is complete.
Hadfield added: “Big decision by NASA leadership, with multiple domino impacts on operations, but I’m glad to see, as always, crew health and safety come first. The Station will be more vulnerable until the replacement crew of 4 can launch, but we have deep experience running the place with just 3 astronauts for a while.”
The public first became aware that a member of Crew-11 had become unwell upon the cancellation of spacewalk planned for January 8, 2026.
Station Commander Mike Fincke, 58, and Flight Engineer Zena Cardman, 38, were due to conduct a six-hour spacewalk to install a modification kit and routing cables for a future roll-out solar array.
Veteran astronaut Fincke and mission commander Cardman, who were both born in the US, launched from the John F Kennedy Space Center on August 1, 2025, along with Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov.
Crew-11 was initially scheduled to return to Earth around February 20, 2026, following a six-month stay at ISS.