Which crew member is ill? NASA evaluates early ISS mission end after medical issue

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is assessing an early return to Earth for the four astronauts of Crew-11 following a medical concern aboard the International Space Station (ISS), the agency confirmed Thursday, January 8, 2026.

The situation led to the indefinite postponement of a planned spacewalk.

The medical issue arose with a single crew member on Wednesday, January 7, afternoon. In an updated statement, NASA said the individual is “stable” but the agency is “actively evaluating all options, including the possibility of an earlier end to Crew-11’s mission.”

According to NASA’s spokesperson, “Safely conducting our missions is our highest priority.”

Following this concern, a spacewalk scheduled for Thursday, January 8, is also postponed, where NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman were to perform external maintenance and upgrades.

A second spacewalk planned for next week is also on hold.

Crew-11 consists of NASA’s Fincke and Cardman, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, launched to the station on August 1, 2025.

Their mission was scheduled to conclude in late February 2026, after a routine handover with the next crew.

NASA stated that due to medical privacy, no further details about the crew member or the nature of the concern would be shared publicly.

The agency pledged to assist with another update within 24 hours as it analyses the next steps for the crew and the postponed station operations.