NASA identifies astronaut behind ISS's first medical evacuation

NASA disclosed that astronaut Mike Fincke experienced a medical issue during SpaceX's Crew-11 mission to the ISS that required urgent attention not available on the station, prompting an early return of all four Crew-11 crewmates—Fincke, Zena Cardman, Kimiya Yui and Oleg Platonov—aboard Endeavour on Jan. 15. The exact ailment was not disclosed, but it necessitated advanced medical imaging on Earth. The Crew-11 return left a skeleton crew aboard the ISS until Crew-12 arrived, and Fincke is recovering at NASA's Johnson Space Center after landing as mission planners adjusted Crew-12's launch to maintain operations.