SpaceX’s Crew-11 capsule begins its return to Earth on Thursday, January 15 with deorbit and splashdown following a medical evacuation. The crew comprises NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Michael Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.

The return home comes earlier planned due to a medical issue involving one crew member aboard the station, who has not been identified.

Crew-11 launched on August 1, 2025, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Centre for a planned six-month mission, with a return originally scheduled for February 2026.