This is the moment a SpaceX capsule left the International Space Station on an emergency return flight to Earth prompted by a medical issue afflicting one of the astronauts. It is Nasa’s first medical evacuation, with the mission being cut a month short. Onboard were American astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, a Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, and a Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui. Computer modelling predicted a medical evacuation from the space station every three years but Nasa has not had one before in its 65 years of human spaceflight

Source: The Guardian January 16, 2026 09:44 UTC