Astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, as well as Japanese astronaut Kimiya Yui and Russian cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, returned to Earth early. They returned before originally scheduled after the father (her husband) suffered a medical emergency. The crew left the ISS on a Thursday. They returned a month early during their six and a half month mission’s 6th month.
The new astronauts docked at the ISS on August 1. Their mission was to further a multitude of new and innovative experiments, as well as keep the ISS fully operational and running smoothly. When one crew member got unexpectedly sick, the decision was taken to speed up their return.
The astronauts journeyed home from the ISS in their Dragon Endeavour capsule. The crewed journey took just under 11 hours, ending with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California. They disembarked from the spacecraft at around 01:30 local time, which corresponds to 09:30 GMT.
Such an early return underscores the imperative that health and safety be prioritized in all space missions. It empowers rapid response and intervention to ensure the health and safety of each crew member. While the team was indeed ready for a longer engagement, a return was necessary due to rapidly changing circumstances.