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SpaceX Crew 11 Splashes Down in First Ever Medical Evacuation From the International Space Station

SpaceX Crew-11 Splashes Down in First-Ever Medical Evacuation From the International Space Station

The mission was cut short due to a critical medical condition, highlighting emergency preparedness and crew safety in human spaceflight.

Written by Gadgets 360 Staff | Updated: 16 January 2026 13:54 IST

SpaceX Crew-11 Splashes Down in First-Ever Medical Evacuation From the International Space Station

Photo Credit: NASA TV

SpaceX's Crew-11 Crew Dragon capsule, is seen shortly after undocking from the ISS on Jan. 14

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Highlights

First medical evacuation of astronauts from the ISS
SpaceX Dragon returned Crew-11 weeks ahead of schedule
Incident highlights NASA’s emergency readiness in orbit

The first-ever medical evacuation of the ISS crew occurred when four astronauts on the SpaceX Crew-11 NASA mission departed the station on January 14, 2026. NASA prematurely ended the six-month mission due to one of the astronauts having a medical condition that was critical, but was not mentioned at approximately 12:41am Pacific Time on January 15, the SpaceX Dragon capsule Endeavour landed off California, and the mission that was initially intended to end in late February had been completed.

Emergency evacuation

According to a NASA statement of January 8, Crew-11 returned earlier because of a medical issue. On January 14, the mission managers gave approval on undocking and kept a close eye on the situation. Dragon undocked at 5:20 p.m. EST on January 14 and, after an 11-hour descent, safely landed on January 15 (0841 GMT).

This was the first occasion on which a crew from a space station was brought home due to health reasons, according to NASA officials.

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Mission background and implications

The crew of the Crew-11 that left on August 1, 2025 was scheduled to take a total of six months to remain in the station. Many dozens of experiments and maintenance are now finished, and a reduced crew of three is left at the station until the crew-12 mission.

NASA has argued that this accident confirms that NASA can continue to keep its crew members safe as it goes about its exploration mission. There is a medical facility in the space station that is appropriate in case of any medical condition, and how it can be improved will also be analysed.

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Further reading: NASA, International Space Station, Science