SpaceX Crew-11

SpaceX Crew-11
Launch of Crew-11
NamesUSCV-11
Mission typeISS crew transport
OperatorSpaceX
COSPAR ID2025-166A
SATCAT no.65077Edit this on Wikidata
Mission duration166 days, 16 hours and 57 minutes
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftCrew Dragon Endeavour
Spacecraft typeCrew Dragon
ManufacturerSpaceX
Crew
Crew size4
Members
ExpeditionExpedition 73/74
Start of mission
Launch dateAugust 1, 2025, 15:43:42 UTC (11:43:42 am EDT)[1]
RocketFalcon 9 Block 5 (B1094-3), Flight 512
Launch siteKennedy, LC‑39A
End of mission
Recovered byMV Shannon
Landing dateJanuary 15, 2026, 08:41:36 UTC (12:41:36 am PST)[2]
Landing sitePacific Ocean near San Diego (32°36′N 117°42′W / 32.6°N 117.7°W / 32.6; -117.7)[2]
Orbital parameters
Reference systemGeocentric orbit
RegimeLow Earth orbit
Perigee altitude192 km (119 mi)
Apogee altitude214 km (133 mi)
Inclination51.65°
Docking with ISS
Docking portHarmony zenith
Docking dateAugust 2, 2025, 06:26:56 UTC
Undocking dateJanuary 14, 2026, 22:20 UTC[2]
Time docked165 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 a crew member.[3]

Crew

Zena Cardman was originally assigned to SpaceX Crew-9,[4] but she and Stephanie Wilson were removed from that flight,[5] 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,[6] 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.[7]

Prime crew
Position[8] 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
Backup crew
Position[9] 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%[10] Storm clouds at launch pad.
2 1 Aug 2025, 11:43:42 am Success 0 days 23 hours 34 minutes 75%[11]

The eleventh SpaceX operational mission in the Commercial Crew Program was scheduled for launch on July 31, 2025, but was scrubbed due to weather.[10] After a quick turn around, SpaceX was able to launch the mission the next day on August 1, 2025.[12] The mission marked the final landing of a Falcon 9 booster on Landing Zone 1, which was then retired.[12] At 14 hours, 43 minutes, and 10 seconds, it is the fastest Crew Dragon rendezvous to date.[13]

Medical incident

On January 7, 2026, one of the astronauts experienced an undisclosed "medical situation" that prompted NASA to cut the mission short.[14] The medical issue already caused the cancellation of a planned extravehicular activity, USA EVA 94 that was supposed to take place on January 8, 2026. The EVA would have prepared the station to receive the final pair of ISS Roll-Out Solar Arrays (iROSAs).[15] At a news conference on January 8, 2026, NASA administrator Jared Isaacman announced that Crew-11 would return to Earth early, because of the astronaut that is suffering the medical issue.[16] It was not stated at the time when they would come back, nor if Crew-12 could be moved up from its planned mid-February 2026 launch date.[17] Subsequently, Crew-11 splashed back down to Earth on January 15, 2026.[18] Isaacman said that the early return of Crew-11 and an earlier launch of Crew-12 would not affect plans for Artemis II, which was planned to launch no earlier than March 6, 2025.[19]

SpaceX Crew-11
  • Crew-11 astronauts walk out from the O&C Building
    Crew-11 astronauts walk out from the O&C Building
  • Crew Dragon Endeavour approaches the ISS
    Crew Dragon Endeavour approaches the ISS
  • Support teams approach Crew Dragon Endeavour after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean
    Support teams approach Crew Dragon Endeavour after splashdown in the Pacific Ocean

References

  1. ^ "SpaceX Crew-11". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved July 14, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c McDowell, Jonathan (January 5, 2026). "Jonathan's Space Report No. 853". planet4589.org. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  3. ^ "The Space Review: Prescriptions for space medicine". www.thespacereview.com. Retrieved January 13, 2026.
  4. ^ Bardan, Roxana (January 31, 2024). "NASA Shares Assignments for its SpaceX Crew-9 Space Station Mission". NASA. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
  5. ^ Donaldson, Abbey A. (August 30, 2024). "NASA's SpaceX Crew-9 Changes Ahead of September Launch". NASA. Retrieved September 28, 2024.
  6. ^ 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.
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ 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.
  9. ^ "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.
  10. ^ 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.
  11. ^ "Crew-11 Launch Forecast" (PDF). 45th Weather Squadron. July 31, 2025. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 31, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.
  12. ^ a b Foust, Jeff (August 1, 2025). "Crew-11 launches to ISS". SpaceNews. Alexandria, Virginia: Pocket Ventures, LLC. ISSN 1046-6940. Archived from the original on January 8, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  13. ^ 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.
  14. ^ 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. Archived from the original on January 8, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  15. ^ 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.
  16. ^ 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.
  17. ^ Bergin, Chris (January 8, 2026). "Crew-11 to return early due to a medical concern with astronaut". NASA SpaceFlight. Archived from the original on January 9, 2026. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  18. ^ Rannard, Georgina (January 15, 2026). "Astronauts splash down to Earth after medical evacuation from space station". BBC. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  19. ^ 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.
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