NASA considering evacuation after astronaut suffers concerning medical condition on board ISS
Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman were supposed to help with a new solar array
In case Hollywood hadn't already made it clear with the various sci-fi disaster movies like Gravity and The Martian, space is not to be messed with. Even though it's said we know more about space than we do about our own oceans, we can think of safer jobs.
642 people have officially crossed the crucial Kármán line into what's officially classed as space, and at the time of writing, there are 10 people in space on both the International Space Station and China's Tiangong.
The ISS's SpaceX Crew-11 have been up there the longest, and as they approach their 160th day in space, the mission continues. Even though astronauts manage to keep busy on the ISS, we imagine getting to head outside on a spacewalk is one of the most fascinating parts of their lengthy stay in the cosmos.
Unfortunately for those aboard the ISS, NASA has just pulled the plug on one.
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Crew-11's Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman were due to undertake a spacewalk today (January 8), but due to a 'medical concern', it will no longer go ahead.
The pair were due to prepare a power channel to help install a new solar array, marking Cardman's first spacewalk since she was chosen for the astronaut corps in 2017. Fincke is more of a space veteran, and if it had gone ahead, this would've been his ninth spacewalk.
In a statement, NASA wrote: "Due to medical privacy, it is not appropriate for NASA to share more details about the crew member. The situation is stable. NASA will share additional details, including a new date for the upcoming spacewalk, later.”
There are now fears that the situation is serious enough to cut the Crew-11 mission short in its entirety. It's not as simple as just dialing 911 and whisking someone away for a check-up when you're circling 408km above us.
In a follow-up email shared by Space.com, NASA reiterated: "Safely conducting our missions is our highest priority, and we are actively evaluating all options, including the possibility of an earlier end to Crew-11’s mission.
"These are the situations NASA and our partners train for and prepare to execute safely. We will provide further updates within the next 24 hours."
Alongside Fincke and Cardman, the Crew-11 quartet is made up of Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and Roscosmos' Oleg Platonov. The group was already on the home stretch of their six-month stay, although NASA has promised to provide updates on whether it'll be forced to shorten their mission so close to its natural conclusion.
Also aboard the ISS are the three members of Soyuz MS-28, launching in November 2025 and comprising Roscosmos' Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergey Mikayev, as well as NASA's Christopher Williams.