An unspecified medical situation involving a crew member on the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday led to the postponement of a planned spacewalk. This situation might also require an early return for some of the seven-person crew, NASA announced.
This marks the first potential medical evacuation from space, although the option has always been available with lifeboats at the ISS ready for activation. Due to the “medical concern,” NASA officials held back on disclosing further information about the affected crew member, citing medical privacy restrictions.
Postponements due to medical issues are rare, though not unheard of. The last occurrence was in 2021 when a spacewalk was delayed due to an astronaut having a pinched nerve. Initially, NASA planned to reschedule Thursday's spacewalk, but the situation appeared more pressing following a late-night statement from the agency.
The update confirmed the issue was confined to a single crew member who was stable. NASA shared that managers are contemplating an early return for the affected crew member aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
This Dragon spacecraft, currently docked at the ISS, launched on August 1 with NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov. The mission, identified as Crew-11, was planned to return to Earth around February 20.
NASA emphasized, “Safely conducting our missions is our highest priority, and we are actively evaluating all options, including the possibility of an earlier end to Crew-11’s mission.” updates are expected within the next 24 hours.