NASA and SpaceX announced on Jan. 9, 2026, that Crew-11 would leave the International Space Station no earlier than 5 p.m. EST on Jan. 14, with splashdown planned for about 3:40 a.m. EST on Jan. 15. The return was moved earlier while NASA monitored a stable medical concern involving one station crew member. The event is now complete: Dragon undocked at 5:20 p.m. EST on Jan. 14 and splashed down at 12:41 a.m. Pacific Time on Jan. 15 off the coast of San Diego.
What NASA and SpaceX announced
The Jan. 9 announcement set a target, not a guaranteed timetable. NASA and SpaceX planned to close Dragon’s hatch and depart the station on Jan. 14, then land in the Pacific Ocean the next morning.
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| Milestone | Announced target |
|---|---|
| Hatch-closure coverage | 3 p.m. EST, Jan. 14 |
| Hatch closing | 3:30 p.m. EST, Jan. 14 |
| Undocking coverage | 4:45 p.m. EST, Jan. 14 |
| Undocking | No earlier than 5 p.m. EST, Jan. 14 |
| Return coverage | 2:15 a.m. EST, Jan. 15 |
| Deorbit burn | 2:50 a.m. EST, Jan. 15 |
| Planned splashdown | Approximately 3:40 a.m. EST, Jan. 15, off California |
| Return-to-Earth news conference | 5:45 a.m. EST, Jan. 15 |
NASA identified spacecraft readiness, recovery-team readiness, weather, sea conditions and conditions in the recovery area as factors that could change the schedule.
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NASA’s announcement is archived at NASA’s Space Station blog and in its Commercial Crew update.
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Why the return was moved up
NASA said on Jan. 8 that it was accelerating the return while monitoring a stable medical concern involving a crew member aboard the ISS. The agency did not initially identify the person or disclose the condition, citing medical privacy. That statement did not say that the entire crew was in danger.
In a later NASA account published Feb. 25, Mike Fincke said he experienced a medical event on Jan. 7 and requested that his account be shared. His statement is available through NASA’s Crew-11 mission blog. It does not justify speculation beyond what NASA and Fincke publicly stated.
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Who was aboard Crew-11?
- Zena Cardman — NASA commander
- Michael “Mike” Fincke — NASA pilot
- Kimiya Yui — Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut
- Oleg Platonov — Roscosmos cosmonaut
The crew returned in SpaceX’s Dragon Endeavour. SpaceX identifies Crew-11 as the spacecraft’s 11th operational human spaceflight mission and lists Endeavour’s earlier flights as Demo-2, Crew-2, Ax-1, Crew-6 and Crew-8. See the SpaceX Crew-11 mission page.
What actually happened
Dragon autonomously undocked from the ISS at 5:20 p.m. EST on Jan. 14, 2026. It splashed down at 12:41 a.m. Pacific Time on Jan. 15—about 3:41 a.m. EST—off the coast of San Diego. The planned time and the actual time differ because the former was an operational target subject to changing conditions.
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NASA’s return report describes the mission as lasting 167 days in space. SpaceX lists Dragon as docked to the station for 165 days. Those figures use different start and end points: one describes time in space, while the other describes time attached to the ISS.
What happened after splashdown?
NASA arranged additional medical evaluation for all four astronauts at a local hospital. They spent a planned overnight period at a medical facility and were released as expected. On Jan. 16, they returned to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston for standard postflight reconditioning and evaluations. NASA said the crew remained stable and did not provide further medical details. The agency’s account is in the return announcement and its Houston update.
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Crew-11’s launch and station mission
Crew-11 launched at 11:43 a.m. EDT on Aug. 1, 2025, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Dragon docked with the ISS on Aug. 2 at 2:27 a.m. Eastern Time (1:27 a.m. Central Time). The Commercial Crew mission supported station research intended to inform future human exploration beyond low Earth orbit and produce benefits on Earth. NASA’s mission overview is available at NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 page.
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Where to find the archived coverage
Because the return has already occurred, NASA’s stream is an archive rather than a live event. The scheduled re-entry and splashdown program remains available on NASA+.
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