SpaceX Crew-11
Launch of Crew-11 | |
| Names | USCV-11 |
|---|---|
| Mission type | ISS crew transport |
| Operator | SpaceX |
| COSPAR ID | 2025-166A |
| SATCAT no. | 65077 |
| Mission duration | 166 days, 16 hours and 57 minutes |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Crew Dragon Endeavour |
| Spacecraft type | Crew Dragon |
| Manufacturer | SpaceX |
| Crew | |
| Crew size | 4 |
| Members | |
| Expedition | Expedition 73/74 |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | August 1, 2025, 15:43:42 UTC (11:43:42 am EDT)[1] |
| Rocket | Falcon 9 Block 5 (B1094-3), Flight 512 |
| Launch site | Kennedy, LC‑39A |
| End of mission | |
| Recovered by | MV Shannon |
| Landing date | January 15, 2026, 08:41:36 UTC (12:41:36 am PST)[2] |
| Landing site | Pacific Ocean near San Diego (32°36′N 117°42′W / 32.6°N 117.7°W)[2] |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Perigee altitude | 192 km (119 mi) |
| Apogee altitude | 214 km (133 mi) |
| Inclination | 51.65° |
| Docking with ISS | |
| Docking port | Harmony zenith |
| Docking date | August 2, 2025, 06:26:56 UTC |
| Undocking date | January 14, 2026, 22:20 UTC[2] |
| Time docked | 165 days, 15 hours and 53 minutes |
| NASA (left), SpaceX (middle), and JAXA (right) mission patches Clockwise, from top left: Platonov, Yui, Cardman, and Fincke | |
SpaceX Crew-11 was the eleventh operational NASA Commercial Crew Program flight and the 19th crewed orbital flight of a Crew Dragon spacecraft. The mission transported four crew members, NASA astronauts Zena Cardman and Michael Fincke, JAXA astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, to the International Space Station (ISS). The mission launched on August 1, 2025 and docked with the ISS the next day. On January 8, 2026, NASA announced that the mission would end about a month earlier than planned due to an undisclosed "medical situation" involving Fincke.
Crew
Zena Cardman was originally assigned to SpaceX Crew-9,[3] but she and Stephanie Wilson were removed from that flight,[4] which launched with only two crew members and returned with the crew of the Boeing Crew Flight Test due to issues with the Boeing Starliner Calypso,[5] while Michael Fincke and Kimiya Yui were initially assigned to Boeing Starliner-1, but they were reassigned to Crew-11 due to testing with the Boeing Starliner capsule.[6]
| Position[7] | Crew | |
|---|---|---|
| Commander | Zena Cardman, NASA Expedition 73/74 First spaceflight | |
| Pilot | Michael Fincke, NASA Expedition 73/74 Fourth spaceflight | |
| Mission specialist | Kimiya Yui, JAXA Expedition 73/74 Second spaceflight | |
| Mission specialist | Oleg Platonov, Roscosmos Expedition 73/74 First spaceflight | |
| Position[8] | Crew | |
|---|---|---|
| Mission specialist | Oleg Artemyev, Roscosmos | |
Mission
Launch
| Attempt | Planned | Result | Turnaround | Reason | Decision point | Weather go (%) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 31 Jul 2025, 12:09:20 pm | Scrubbed | — | Weather | 31 Jul 2025, 12:08 pm (T−00:01:07) | 90%[9] | Storm clouds at launch pad. |
| 2 | 1 Aug 2025, 11:43:42 am | Success | 0 days 23 hours 34 minutes | 75%[10] |
The eleventh SpaceX operational mission in the Commercial Crew Program was scheduled for launch on July 31, 2025, but was scrubbed due to weather.[9] After a quick turn around, SpaceX was able to launch the mission the next day on August 1, 2025.[11] The mission marked the final landing of a Falcon 9 booster on Landing Zone 1, which was then retired.[11] At 14 hours, 43 minutes, and 10 seconds, it is the fastest Crew Dragon rendezvous to date.[12]
Medical incident
On January 7, 2026, NASA shortened the mission due to an undisclosed "medical situation" experienced by one of its crew members.[13][14] The incident led to the cancellation of two planned spacewalks on January 8 and 15, including preparations for installation of ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays (iROSAs) and other maintenance tasks on the Harmony module and the station’s S6 and S4 truss.[15] At a news conference on January 8, 2026, NASA administrator Jared Isaacman announced that Crew-11 would return to Earth earlier than planned due to the medical situation.[16] Crew-11 ultimately splashed down on January 15, 2026 about a month earlier than planned.[17][18][19]
In a statement on February 25, 2026, Fincke revealed that he experienced the medical event. He said that the event required immediate attention from his crewmates, and thanks to their actions under the guidance of NASA flight surgeons, he was quickly stabilized. He said that the decision to return home early was driven by a desire to take advantage of advanced medical imaging not available on the space station. After splashdown, Fincke was treated at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla and stated that he is subsequently doing "very well".[14]
Gallery
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Crew-11 astronauts walk out from the O&C Building
-
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Support teams approach Crew Dragon Endeavour after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean
References
- ^ "SpaceX Crew-11". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
- ^ a b c McDowell, Jonathan (January 5, 2026). "Jonathan's Space Report No. 853". planet4589.org. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
- ^ Bardan, Roxana (January 31, 2024). "NASA Shares Assignments for its SpaceX Crew-9 Space Station Mission". NASA. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
- ^ Donaldson, Abbey A. (August 30, 2024). "NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Changes Ahead of September Launch". NASA. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
- ^ Dunn, Marcia (August 24, 2024). "NASA decides to keep 2 astronauts in space until February, nixes return on troubled Boeing capsule". AP News. Retrieved August 26, 2024.
- ^ Robinson-Smith, Will (March 28, 2025). "NASA switches Starliner crew to SpaceX Dragon as testing continues on troubled Boeing capsule". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved July 13, 2025.
- ^ Doyle, Tiernan P. (March 27, 2025). "NASA Shares SpaceX Crew-11 Assignments for Space Station Mission". NASA. Archived from the original on March 27, 2025. Retrieved March 27, 2025.
- ^ "Центр подготовки космонавтов им. Ю.А.Гагарина. Официальный Web-сайт" [Crews in training]. Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center (in Russian). Archived from the original on July 26, 2025. Retrieved August 3, 2025.
- ^ a b Robinson-Smith, Will (July 31, 2025). "Cumulus clouds scrub launch of Crew-11 mission to the Space Station". Spaceflight Now. Archived from the original on July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
- ^ "Crew-11 Launch Forecast" (PDF). 45th Weather Squadron. July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b
Foust, Jeff (August 1, 2025). "Crew-11 launches to ISS". SpaceNews. Alexandria, Virginia: Pocket Ventures, LLC. ISSN 1046-6940. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Tingley, Brett (August 1, 2025). "SpaceX launches Crew-11 astronauts to the ISS for NASA on milestone Crew Dragon flight (video)". Space.com. Retrieved August 1, 2025.
- ^ Holpuch, Amanda; Chang, Kenneth (January 8, 2026). "NASA Will Bring I.S.S. Astronauts Home Early After Medical Issue". The New York Times. ISSN 1553-8095. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ a b "NASA's SpaceX Crew-11 Astronaut Update". NASA. February 25, 2026. Retrieved February 25, 2026.
- ^ Robinson-Smith, Will (January 7, 2026). "NASA weighs an earlier end to the Crew-11 mission after a 'medical situation' with an ISS crew member postpones first spacewalk of 2026". Spaceflight Now. Archived from the original on January 8, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
- ^ Clark, Stephen (January 8, 2026). "NASA orders "controlled medical evacuation" from the International Space Station". Ars Technica. New York: Condé Nast. Archived from the original on January 9, 2026. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
- ^
Bergin, Chris (January 8, 2026). "Crew-11 to return early due to a medical concern with astronaut". NASA SpaceFlight. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link) - ^ Rannard, Georgina (January 15, 2026). "Astronauts splash down to Earth after medical evacuation from space station". BBC News. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
- ^ Harwood, William (January 9, 2026). "Crew-11 to cut mission short and return to Earth due to medical issue". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved January 9, 2026.