Someone on the International Space Station experienced an unspecified “medical situation” Wednesday, delaying a planned spacewalk and raising the possibility of an early return for part of the lab's seven-person crew, NASA said in a statement.
NASA has never ordered a medical evacuation from space before, but the option has always been available on the International Space Station with lifeboats ready to be activated.
The space agency announced a postponement of the spacewalk Wednesday afternoon due to a “medical issue” with a space station crew member. NASA officials declined to identify the crew member or disclose further information about his condition, citing medical confidentiality restrictions.
Night update
It is rare, but not unprecedented, for NASA to delay a spacewalk due to medical concerns. The last time this happened was in 2021, when an astronaut was unable to go into outer space due to a pinched nerve. NASA initially said managers would reschedule Thursday's planned excursion to another date.
But the situation on the ISS appeared more serious after a second statement issued by NASA late Wednesday. NASA confirmed that the medical problem affected one crew member and said that person was in stable condition. NASA then said managers were considering flying the sick crew member home on a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.
The Dragon spacecraft, docked to the ISS, was launched on August 1 with NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Finke, Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov. This mission, designated Crew 11, was scheduled to end with the crew undocking and returning to Earth around February 20.
“The safe execution of our missions is our highest priority, and we are actively evaluating all options, including the possibility of ending the Crew 11 mission earlier,” NASA said. “These are situations that NASA and our partners are preparing for and preparing to handle safely. We will provide further updates over the next 24 hours.”
