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NASA postpones spacewalk over ‘medical concern’ with astronaut
The spacewalk would have been the first for Cardman, a 38-year-old geobiologist who was selected for the astronaut corps in 2017.
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IANS - Thu, 08, Jan 2026
- 04:25 EST
- 22
File Photo / NASA
The U.S. space agency NASA on Jan. 8 postponed its scheduled spacewalk over a “medical concern” involving an astronaut.
Two Expedition 74 NASA astronauts — Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman — were slated for the first spacewalk of 2026. They had planned to exit an airlock aboard the International Space Station for power upgrade work.
The space agency, however, has not provided details about the medical issue or identified the astronaut involved.
“NASA is postponing the Thursday, Jan. 8, spacewalk outside the International Space Station. The agency is monitoring a medical concern with a crew member that arose Wednesday afternoon aboard the orbital complex,” the U.S. space agency said in a blog post.
“Due to medical privacy, it is not appropriate for NASA to share more details about the crew member. The situation is stable. NASA will share additional details, including a new date for the upcoming spacewalk, later,” the post added.
During the planned six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk, station commander Fincke and flight engineer Cardman were set to install a modification kit and route cables for a future roll-out solar array.
The duo also planned to install jumper cables, take hardware photographs, and collect microorganism samples.
The spacewalk would have been the first for Cardman, a 38-year-old geobiologist who was selected for the astronaut corps in 2017.
On Jan. 7, Fincke and Cardman organized their spacewalking tools and supplies inside the Quest airlock, where they were scheduled to exit the orbital outpost. They also finished configuring their spacesuits and associated life support and emergency components, NASA said.
At the end of their shift, they were joined by flight engineers Chris Williams of NASA and Kimiya Yui of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) for a final spacewalk procedures review and readiness conference with mission controllers on the ground.
Williams and Yui will assist the astronauts in and out of their spacesuits, pressurize and depressurize the Quest airlock, and monitor the spacewalkers as they work outside the orbiting laboratory, it added.
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