“It’s wonderful to be back home,” expressed Zena Cardman, the NASA astronaut and capsule commander.
The mission, which commenced in August, concluded unexpectedly, leaving the space station with just three crew members: one American and two Russians.
In response, NASA and SpaceX are exploring options to expedite the launch of a new crew of four, with the liftoff tentatively scheduled for mid-February.
Joining Cardman on the journey back were NASA’s Mike Fincke, Japan’s Kimiya Yui, and Russia’s Oleg Platonov. Due to medical privacy regulations, officials have not disclosed the identity of the astronaut who experienced health issues last week, nor have they detailed the specifics of the incident.
Although the astronaut remained stable while in orbit, NASA prioritized their return to Earth to ensure they receive comprehensive medical evaluation and care promptly.
Officials reported that the re-entry and splashdown were executed without any special adjustments, with the recovery vessel equipped with its standard team of medical professionals to attend to the crew.
The astronauts will receive more in-depth medical checks at a local hospital before flying to their home base in Houston, NASA said. Platonov’s return to Moscow was unclear.
The astronauts emerged from the capsule, one by one, after it was aboard the recovery ship. They were helped onto reclining cots and then whisked away for standard medical checks, waving to the cameras.
Jared Isaacman, NASA’s new administrator, monitored the action from Mission Control in Houston.
NASA stressed repeatedly over the past week that this was not an emergency. The astronaut fell sick or was injured on January 7, prompting NASA to call off the next day’s spacewalk by Cardman and Fincke, and ultimately resulting in the early return.
It was the first time NASA cut short a spaceflight for medical reasons. The Russians had done so decades ago.
The space station has gotten by with three astronauts before, sometimes even with just two.
NASA said it will be unable to perform a spacewalk, even for an emergency, until the arrival of the next crew, which has two Americans, one French and one Russian astronaut.
