NASA and SpaceX are undertaking an unprecedented mission to bring the four-member Crew-11 team back to Earth early from the International Space Station (ISS) this week, marking the first medical evacuation in the station's 25-year operational history. The decision stems from an undisclosed 'serious medical concern' affecting one of the astronauts, prompting a precautionary but urgent return for comprehensive medical evaluation on the ground. The Crew-11 mission, comprising NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Mike Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, launched in August 2025 for a planned six-month stay. The medical issue, which arose on January 7, 2026, also led to the cancellation of a scheduled spacewalk. While NASA has not revealed the astronaut's identity or the specific nature of the ailment due to privacy protocols, officials have confirmed the astronaut is in a stable condition. The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is targeted to undock from the ISS on Wednesday, January 14, at 5 p.m. EST, with a splashdown anticipated off the coast of California around 3:40 a.m. EST on Thursday, January 15, pending favorable weather and recovery conditions. This early return will temporarily reduce the ISS crew to three members until the next mission, Crew-12, can arrive. This historic event underscores NASA's commitment to astronaut safety, prioritizing health over mission timelines, and highlights the limitations of in-orbit diagnostics for certain medical conditions.