NASA postpones Thursday spacewalk after crew 'medical concern'

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NASA announced that it is postponing a spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) scheduled for Thursday due to a medical concern affecting a crew member.

The medical issue arose Wednesday afternoon, the space agency said in a news release.

NASA did not identify which member of the four-person SpaceX Crew 11 team had the medical concern, but said, "the situation is stable." A new date for the spacewalk has yet to be announced.

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Dec. 30, 2025: NASA astronaut and Expedition 74 Flight Engineer Zena Cardman is pictured in her pressurized spacesuit, checking its communication and power systems ahead of a spacewalk planned for Thursday, Jan. 8, 2025. At upper right, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut and Flight Engineer Kimiya Yui assists Cardman as she tests the operations of her spacesuit inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.

(NASA)

Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman were the NASA astronauts scheduled to walk outside the ISS, according to the agency. NASA said it would have been Fincke's tenth spacewalk and Cardman's first.

The spacewalk was intended to make preparations for the future installation of the ISS' Roll-Out Solar Arrays.

NASA said once installed, the arrays will provide additional power for the orbital laboratory, including critical support of its safe and controlled de-orbit.

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DEC. 12, 2025: The seven-member Expedition 74 crew gathers for a portrait inside the International Space Station's Kibo laboratory module. In the front row, from left, are Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Mikaev and Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, along with NASA astronaut Chris Williams. In the back row are JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, and NASA astronaut Zena Cardman. Kud-Sverchkov (center) was celebrating 200 cumulative days in space with a slice of cake.

(NASA)

Fincke and Cardman are two of seven astronauts who are part of Expedition 74, the international crew, which began in early December and will conclude this summer.

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NASA had previously announced a second spacewalk was supposed to take place on Jan. 15.

Check back for updates on this developing story.