What happened to Mike Fincke? NASA's astronaut behind unprecedented ISS evacuation

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has finally unveiled the name of the astronaut who triggered the medical evacuation of the International Space Station (ISS) last month.

Veteran NASA astronaut Mike Fincke has been identified as the crew member who underwent a medical emergency aboard the ISS on January 7.

Due to his condition, officials conducted the first-ever evacuation due to a health issue in the station’s 25-year history.

The 58-year-old was on his third mission and was part of the four-member Crew 11 team alongside NASA’s Zena Cardman, Japan’s Kimiya Yui, and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.

In an official statement, NASA reported that Fincke “experienced a medical event that required immediate attention” from his crewmates.

The exact medication condition is still not disclosed. However, Fincke credited his fellow crew member’s “quick response” and NASA flight surgeons for stabilising his condition. This represents that he had a serious medical emergency.

Following the incident, the spacewalk scheduled for January 8 was also cancelled. Within days, NASA made arrangements to call all four Crew-11 members home early, citing a “carefully coordinated plan.”

Originally, Crew-11 was scheduled to stay until late February. Talking about the initial medical assistance, Fincke revealed that the space station’s onboard ultrasound “came in super handy” during the initial response.