Last month, a team of four NASA astronauts returned to Earth from the International Space Station (ISS) sooner than scheduled.
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The reason why? A previously unidentified crew member experienced a "medical event" in space. NASA first shared the news on Jan. 7 when it announced the postponement of a spacewalk scheduled for the following day.
Then on Jan. 8, the agency confirmed that the Crew-11 team, which consisted of U.S. astronauts Fincke and Zena Cardman; JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui; and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, would come home early.
The crew left the ISS on Jan. 14. They splashed down near San Diego the following day.
The astronaut who experienced the "medical event" revealed his identity and shared what happened. We have the details below.
The NASA Astronaut Shared a Statement
On Feb. 25, astronaut Mike Fincke revealed in a statement shared by NASA that he was the crew member who sustained the "medical event."
"On Jan. 7, while aboard the International Space Station, I experienced a medical event that required immediate attention from my incredible crewmates," he wrote. "Thanks to their quick response and the guidance of our NASA flight surgeons, my status quickly stabilized."
He then added, "After further evaluation, NASA determined that the safest course was an early return for Crew-11 — not an emergency, but a carefully coordinated plan to be able to take advantage of advanced medical imaging not available on the space station. On Jan. 15, we splashed down off the coast of San Diego after an amazing five-and-a-half-month mission."
How Is Mike Fincke Doing Now?
The statement, which was shared by PEOPLE, did not provide any details about Fincke's condition. He then thanked his fellow team members, NASA, and the professional and dedicated medical staff at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla for a "positive outcome."
"I'm doing very well and continuing standard post-flight reconditioning at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston," he said. "Spaceflight is an incredible privilege, and sometimes it reminds us just how human we are. Thank you all for your support."
This was the first time in ISS history that a mission was cut short due to a medical issue. The Crew-11 team spent 167 days in space conducting scientific research. A month later, a new crew replaced them.
