HOUSTON – Astronaut Mike Fincke released a statements weeks after NASA made a rare move to cut the crews mission short after Fincke experienced a medical issue in space.
The four astronauts on the space station, from the U.S., Russia and Japan, launched in August and planned to return in late February.
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Everything changed on Jan. 7, when Fincke said he had a medical event that required attention from his crewmates, NASA’s Zena Cardman, Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Platonov.
Officials said the health problem was unrelated to spacewalk preparations or other station operations.
“After further evaluation, NASA determined the safest course was an early return for Crew-11, not an emergency, but a carefully coordinated plan to be able to take advantage of the advanced medical imaging not available on the space station,” Fincke said.
The crew splashed down off the coast of San Diego on Jan. 15 after the five-and-a-half-month mission.
“I am deeply grateful to my fellow Expedition 74 members, Zena Cardman, Kimiya Yui, Oleg Platonov, Chris Williams, Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Sergei Mikayev, as well as the entire NASA team, SpaceX, and the medical professionals at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla near San Diego. Their professionalism and dedication ensure a positive outcome,” Fincke stated in the released.
He said he is doing well and continuing standard post-flight reconditioning at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.