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NASA shared earlier today that a crew member on board SpaceX's Crew 8 mission, which returned to Earth earlier today, experienced a rare medical issue and has been kept under observation in the hospital. NASA astronauts Michael Barratt, Jeanette Epps, and Matthew Dominick, along with Russian cosmonaut Alexander Grebenkin, returned to Earth from the International Space Station earlier in the morning today. Soon after their return, the agency shared that the four were flown to a medical facility out of an "abundance of caution" and promised details later during the day.
Now, while NASA has decided to keep the astronaut's name private, the agency's carefully worded statement did confirm that it wasn't the cosmonaut with a medical issue. The crew member is "in stable condition" according to the space agency and has been kept under observation.
SpaceX and NASA's Crew 8 mission was initially slated to return to Earth in August. Typical Crew Dragon missions stay in space for roughly 180 days, give or take. However, NASA, the International Space Station (ISS) and Boeing evaluated Boeing's Starliner spacecraft between August and the ship's return in September to determine whether it could support a crewed Earth return. Consequently, Crew 8 became the astronauts' designated emergency vehicle for a while, and as a result, the ship could not return to Earth.
The ship was cleared to return after the Crew 9 astronauts arrived at the ISS late last month. After Crew 9's return, the Crew 8 crew's return was further delayed as teams configured the two ships to make room for Boeing and NASA's Starliner astronauts. Then, Hurricane Milton wreaked havoc, making a water splashdown out of the question. As a result, the astronauts spent more than 230 days in space before finally splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico early this morning.
In its press release earlier today, NASA shared a few details. It outlined that all Crew 8 members were flown to "a local medical facility for additional evaluation." This was "out of an abundance of caution," explained the space agency. Now, NASA adds that after the crew splashed down in the morning, 'a NASA astronaut experienced a medical issue." Following their landing, the crew members were "flown together to Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola in Florida."
As per NASA, after their medical evaluation "three of the crew members departed Pensacola and have arrived at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston." One astronaut is still in the hospital, and "is in stable condition under observation as a precautionary measure." NASA will not share the crew member's identity or condition to preserve their privacy.
Medical assessments for all crew members were requested while they were still in the Dragon post splashdown. The four crew members returned to Earth today after a grueling 235 day long mission. Of these, they spent 232 days on the space station, which also allowed SpaceX to test the ship's endurance.