Crew 11 Archives - Eastern Range

January 8, 2026

Crew 11 Returning From ISS Early, Crew 12 May Launch Earlier Than Currently Planned

Crew 11 prepares to board Crew Dragon and launch to Station on August 1, 2025. Photo: Charles Boyer

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced in a press conference today that NASA’s Crew 11 would return early from the International Space Station due to an unnamed medical issue with an unnamed member of the crew. The date and time of that return has not yet been determined, and will be announced once it is determined.

NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Michael Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov comprise Crew 11.

“Yesterday, January 7th, a single crew member on board the station experienced a medical situation and is now stable. After discussions with Chief Health and Medical Officer Dr. J.D. Polk and leadership across the agency, I’ve come to the decision that it’s in the best interest of our astronauts to return Crew 11 ahead of their planned departure within the coming days.”
— NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman

Regarding the specifics of when Crew 11 will return, Isaacman added that, “We expect to provide a further update within the next 48 hours as to the expected anticipated undock and reentry timeline.” That’s Saturday afternoon. Stay tuned.

Crew 11 launched on August 1, 2025 and has spent 160 days in space since then. Originally planned to return next month after the arrival and handoff to Crew 12, which had planned to launch in mid-February.

Later, Isaacman said plainly, “This is not an emergency deorbit. We retain the capability to bring astronauts home in a matter of hours if necessary. So this is recognizing, first of all, we’re always going to do the right thing for our astronauts, but it’s recognizing it’s the end of the Crew 11 mission right now.”

Jared Isaacman, January 8, 2026. Via NASA Stream

So, one of the four astronauts has a serious enough issue to require testing or treatment on Earth, but it is not an immediate life-or-death emergency requiring Crew 11 to return to Earth with all possible haste. Instead, NASA is moving the timeline up for Crew 11’s return as a matter of prudence for one of its astronauts (or cosmonauts).

Once Crew 11 and Crew Dragon departs, ISS would be down to a skeleton crew: Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev from Roscosmos and NASA’s Chris Williams. They would have only the Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft that docked on Nov. 27, 2025 as a return vehicle.

NASA is looking at accelerating the Crew 12 launch, but no new target date has been announced. “Alongside our international and commercial partners, NASA is evaluating their timeline to include earlier launch opportunities. We will provide more information when it’s available,” Isaacman announced.

What About Artemis II? Could This Issue Create A Delay?

Crew 12 is slated to fly in mid-February from The Cape, and launching earlier might have NASA preparing to launch two different crews on two entirely different missions in a very short timespan: Artemis II is currently scheduled to fly in early February. Launching Crew 12 earlier puts the two closer together on the calendar.

Asked if that would create a conflict within the agency, Isaacman replied to CBS News’s Bill Harwood that “These are totally separate campaigns at this point. We’re still evaluating what earlier dates would be achievable, if any, for Crew 12. So right now we’re going to look at all operations, all of our all of our standard process[es] to prepare for Crew 12 and look for opportunities if we can bring it in while simultaneously conducting our Artemis II campaign.”

Isaacman added that “There’s no reason to believe at this point in time that there would be any overlap that we’d have to de-conflict for.”

There is much more to come with this story.

August 2, 2025

NASA SpaceX Crew 11, August 1, 2025

SpaceX, NASA and the Crew 11 astronauts beat the clouds and rain showers and launched before summer showers washed over Kennedy Space Center today, but just barely. With dark skies and rain rapidly advancing from the south, liftoff of SpaceX’s 18th crewed flight was at 11:43 AM ET from venerable Launch Complex 39A. Crew 11’s four astronauts are now on their way to the International Space Station after today’s launch, with an expected arrival time at the orbital outpost around 3 AM ET tomorrow, August 2.

Gravity Turn: After Max-Q and now in its supersonic flight phase, Falcon 9 enters another gear, leaving the contrail it just made behind quickly. The cloud is from the rocket, not the storms it was escaping on August 1, 2025.

August 1, 2025

Crew 11 Beats The Storms, Now Headed To ISS

SpaceX, NASA and the Crew 11 astronauts beat the clouds and rain showers today, but just barely. With dark skies and rain rapidly advancing from the south, liftoff of SpaceX’s 18th crewed flight was at 11:43 AM ET from Launch Complex 39A from Kennedy Space Center. Crew 11’s four astronauts are now on their way the International Space Station, with an expected arrival time at the orbital outpost around 3AM ET tomorrow, August 2.

The countdown today was a near carbon copy of yesterday’s: picture perfect with few if any issues until the last half hour. At that time, with afternoon temperatures rising into what is best called “miserable”, coastal winds started to rise up in the atmosphere, creating clouds that would grow into rain showers and later, thunderstorms. Yesterday, the clouds were too close to LC-39A and caused a launch scrub because of a weather violation. Today, with a Phase 1 lightning issued only minutes before, the burgeoning showers stayed just far enough away to allow the countdown to proceed and liftoff to occur on schedule.

Later, when Booster 1094 returned to Landing Zone 1 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station rather quietly — from the vantage of the KSC Press Site, the descending booster was hidden in the clouds until the very last, appearing only a second or two before it’s final landing burn began. The normal sonic boom was muted too, and was nowhere near as loud as normal. Today’s landing marks the last at Landing Zone 1 as SpaceX prepares to move Falcon 9 landing operations to a new area nearly adjacent to Space Launch Complex 40.

Meanwhile, the second stage and astronauts aboard Crew Dragon Endeavour continued on their way to orbit, which they achieved at the T+ 00:08:46 mark. At T+ 09:36, Crew Dragon separated from Falcon 9’s second stage.

On Their Way To ISS

Now in orbit, Crew 11 will begin chasing down ISS in earnest, with an expected arrival time around 3 AM ET on August 2nd.

After docking, the station’s total crew will climb to 11 for a brief period as they join current occupants: NASA astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, and Jonny Kim; JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi; and Roscosmos cosmonauts Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, and Alexey Zubritsky.

Crew-10, the previous NASA-SpaceX mission, will remain aboard for a short handover after Crew-11 arrives, then return to Earth. Before their departure, mission teams will monitor weather conditions at designated splashdown zones off the California coast to ensure a safe landing.

Crew-11’s mission focuses heavily on scientific research supporting long-duration human spaceflight and applications on Earth. Their work includes simulating lunar landings, studying how to protect astronauts’ vision in space, and advancing human spaceflight research through NASA’s Human Research Program. Additional experiments will explore plant cell division, the impact of microgravity on virus-bacteria interactions, and methods to produce more human stem cells and generate nutrients on demand.

July 27, 2025

Crew 11 Set For Thursday Lunchtime Launch From KSC

Crew 8 on the pad at LC-39A.
Photo: Charles Boyer / Talk of Titusville

NASA and SpaceX are finalizing preparations for the launch of Crew-11, the next long-duration mission to the International Space Station (ISS), currently targeted for Thursday, July 31, 2025, at 12:09 PM ET from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew members arrived yesterday at KSC, and are undergoing their final preparations for Wednesday’s launch.

The mission will send four astronauts to the ISS aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, flying the Crew Dragon Endeavour spacecraft on its sixth voyage to orbit. The launch marks the eleventh operational crew rotation flight under NASA’s Commercial Crew Program.

Should weather or technical issues delay the liftoff, NASA and SpaceX have identified Thursday, August 1, as the primary backup launch opportunity, with a similar afternoon launch window.

Leading the Mission: Commander Zena Cardman

At the helm of Crew-11 is NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, making her first journey into space. Selected by NASA in 2017, Cardman holds degrees in biology and marine science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to her astronaut career, she conducted research in microbial ecology and geobiology—skills that align closely with her role in conducting biological experiments on the ISS.

Commander Zena Cardman speaking Saturday after the Crew 11 astronauts arrived at Kennedy Space Center
Photo: Eric A. Moore/Florida Media Now

A Veteran Returns: Mike Fincke

Seated beside Cardman in the pilot’s chair is veteran astronaut Mike Fincke. A retired U.S. Air Force colonel and flight test engineer, Fincke has already logged more than 381 days in space across two ISS expeditions and one space shuttle mission. He has also completed nine spacewalks.

Astronaut Mike Fincke in a Russian Orlan suit during an EVA.
Photo: NASA

Originally assigned to the Boeing Starliner program, Fincke was the backup astronaut attached the the Crew Flight Test of Starliner that resulted in the unexpectedly long stay aboard ISS for astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore.

Finke was reassigned to Crew-11 after the return of Starliner, and commercial crew schedule adjustments were made thanks to delays introduced by the CFT problems. His experience provides invaluable backup for the relatively newer members of the team, and his familiarity with long-duration spaceflight is expected to be critical in managing station operations and mentoring the crew aboard.

Representing Japan: Kimiya Yui

JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui returns to orbit for his second flight, having previously served aboard the ISS in 2015 during Expedition 44/45. Yui, a former fighter pilot in the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, was instrumental in setting up Japan’s Kibo laboratory module during his first mission. On Crew-11, he’ll continue that legacy by supporting international science initiatives and representing Japan’s contributions to the station’s operations.

A Russian Debut: Oleg Platonov

Oleg Platonov
Photo: Credit: IMAGO/ITAR-TASS

Rounding out the crew is Oleg Platonov, a first-time space traveler from Russia’s Roscosmos agency. Platonov, an aerospace engineer and former Air Force officer, was initially scheduled to fly on a Soyuz mission but joined Crew-11 under a seat-swap agreement between NASA and Roscosmos.

Despite political tensions on Earth, Platonov’s role highlights the ongoing collaboration between the United States and Russia in maintaining the ISS as a platform for peaceful international science and exploration.

Once At ISS

Once aboard the ISS, the crew will take part in Expeditions 73 and 74, diving into hundreds of research projects ranging from plant biology to space manufacturing to human health in microgravity. The mission also serves as preparation for the Artemis program, as NASA continues to build systems and experience for future lunar missions.

Dragon Endeavour, making its sixth flight, adds another chapter to its legacy as the most frequently reused crew spacecraft in NASA’s current fleet. If all goes according to plan, Crew-11 will return to Earth in April 2026 with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.