NASA identifies astronaut Mike Fincke as the trigger for the unprecedented medical evacuation of the ISS

NASA identifies which astronaut triggered the unprecedented medical evacuation of the ISS

By Jackie Flynn Mogensen edited by Claire Cameron

NASA has shed some light on what triggered the unprecedented medical evacuation of four astronauts from the International Space Station last month.

On Wednesday, the space agency identified longtime astronaut Mike Fincke, 58, as having experienced the medical event that led to the decision to bring him and the three other members of NASA’s Crew-11 mission home weeks ahead of schedule.

“On January 7, while aboard the International Space Station, I experienced a medical event that required the immediate attention of my incredible crewmates,” Fincke said in a statement. “Thanks to their quick response and the guidance of our NASA flight surgeons, my status quickly stabilized.”

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Neither NASA nor Fincke has disclosed the exact nature of the medical problem, but the agency ordered the evacuation to allow for “advanced medical imaging not available on the space station,” Fincke said in the same statement.

“I am doing very well and continuing standard post-flight reconditioning at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston,” Fincke said. “Space travel is an incredible privilege, and sometimes it reminds us how human we are.”

Crew-11—which also included NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Kimiya Yui and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov—detached from the ISS on January 14 and splashed down to Earth on January 15. At a press conference on January 21, Fincke said the medical incident occurred ahead of the space station’s scheduled trip on an ultra-space station. handy.”

“We try to make sure that everybody, before we fly, is really not exposed to surprises. But sometimes things happen, and surprises happen,” Fincke said at the same press conference.

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