ISS Crew Emergency Evacuation | Mars Mission Dead | Fastest Spinning Asteroid: Your Daily Space Update

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Hello, everyone, and welcome to Astronomy Daily,

the podcast where we bring you the latest and greatest

from the world of space and astronomy.

I'm Anna, and with me is my co-host Avery.

Hey Avery, it's January 9th, 2026.

Hope you're staying warm wherever you are.

Hey, Anna, and hi to all our listeners.

Yeah, it's chilly out there where I am

in the Northern Hemisphere,

but I believe our listeners down under

are experiencing very high temperatures today.

But the news is heating up.

Today we've got a truly historic story leading off.

One that's making waves across the space community.

Plus lunar viewing tips, starship and infrastructure upgrades,

big shifts in Mars exploration plans,

a record-breaking asteroid spin and a fascinating map

of ghostly particles streaming through us.

We'll spend extra time on that first one

because it's a milestone.

Let's jump right in.

Absolutely.

This top story is unprecedented.

For the first time in the 25 year history

of the International Space Station,

NASA has ordered a controlled medical evacuation,

bringing home an entire crew early due to a medical issue

with one astronaut.

This involves crew 11,

who launched back in August 2025

aboard SpaceX's Dragon Endeavor.

The four-person team, NASA Commander Mike Fink,

veteran of multiple flights,

pilot Zena Cardman on her rookie mission,

Jackson's Kimia Yui, and Rose Cosmos Cosmonaut Oleg Platonov.

They're a multinational crew

highlighting the international partnership.

The issue arose earlier this week on January 7th

with one unidentified crew member

experiencing a medical situation in microgravity.

NASA emphasizes the astronaut is absolutely stable

and the crew provided immediate care using onboard equipment,

which is advanced but limited compared to a full hospital.

Details are private for good reason, HIPAA and all that.

But NASA Chief Medical Officer Dr. JD Polk

noted its unrelated to station operations

or upcoming tasks.

The key factor while stable now,

there could be lingering risks if they stay in orbit longer

and full diagnosis or treatment isn't possible up there.

After consultations,

Administrator Jared Isaacman made the call,

air on the side of caution

and return the whole crew 11 team in the coming days.

They'll undock soon,

exact schedule coming within 48 hours,

splash down off California

with SpaceX recovery ships ready.

Why the whole crew?

They share one dragon as their lifeboat, no splitting up.

This leaves the ISS with just three people temporarily.

NASA astronaut Chris Williams and two Russian cosmonauts.

They'll handle basics, defer some science

and no space walks possible until crew 12 arrives,

maybe accelerated to next month.

It's certainly historic.

NASA's first medical early return ever.

There was a Soviet case in 1985 on Saliet 7,

but nothing like this for the ISS era.

Past issues like a blood clot in 2019

or pinched nerve in 2021 were managed on board

without evacuation.

This shows how far we've come in crew health management,

but also the limits of long duration spaceflight.

It's a learning moment for Artemis Lunar Stays

and eventual Mars missions.

How do we handle unexpected health events far from Earth?

Totally.

NASA stressed crew safety as priority one

and the quick response highlights training.

We'll keep an eye on updates.

Safe return wishes to crew 11.

Okay, moving to something more serene.

The February full moon is coming up soon,

known as the snow moon.

Peak illumination at 509 PM Eastern on February 1st.

Look east at sunset for that classic big orange tinted rise

due to the moon illusion and atmospheric scattering.

It'll be near cancer stars, easy naked eye spot.

Traditional names reflect winter in the Northern Hemisphere,

snow moon for heavy snowfall,

hungry or bare moon in some indigenous cultures.

In India, magapornima with rituals.

Bonus, on February 2nd, it occults

regulists for parts of North America and Africa.

Incidentally, you will be able to see this

in the Southern Hemisphere as well,

with best date in Sydney, for instance,

forecasted to be on February 2nd,

the same day as Beijing and Tokyo.

Great for photos, tripod, long lens for details

or wide for landscapes.

No special super status, but always magical.

Up next, updates from Starbase,

SpaceX's future-proofing PAD-1's tower

and launch mount for Starship Block III.

PAD-1 had supported early block two flights,

but is now offline for major rework,

demolishing the old mount, adding a flame bucket

with powerful water-day luge, nitrogen,

inerting to prevent fires and reinforced structures.

Upgrades include better quick disconnects for propellants,

shortened chopsticks for heavier lifts.

Goal is rapid reusability, minimal refer between launches,

handling 33 Raptors power.

This mirrors PAD-2 improvements,

enabling frequent flights,

which are crucial for Starship's goals.

Next, let's shift our gaze to Mars.

NASA's ambitious Mars sample return mission

is effectively dead, opening the door wider for China.

Budget cuts slashed funding.

Original $11 billion ballooned,

redesigned to around $7 billion,

but it was still too complex.

Perseverance's caches, lander, fetch rover or helicopters,

a cent rocket, orbital rendezvous, it was a lot.

Congress prioritized other spending,

so there was only $110 million left for tech development.

This disrupts the ESA partnership, too.

Perseverance's 33 tubes stay on Mars,

stable and cold dryness for potential future grab.

Meanwhile, China's plans advance,

simpler opportunistic sampling.

They could be first to return Martian rocks,

which will be huge for science.

A bitter pill for NASA after all they're planning,

but it does redirect resources elsewhere, so there is that.

Let's move on now to asteroid hunting.

The Vera Rubin Observatory has spotted

the fastest spinning, large asteroid ever discovered.

This huge rock rotates in an insanely quick period

under the theoretical rubble pile limit,

yet holds together, likely monolithic or strong internally.

This discovery highlights Vera Rubin's power

and importance for locating near-earth objects.

There are implications for deflection strategies,

as spin affects how we nudge threats if needed.

Okay, moving on.

Finally today, those billions of ghost particles,

neutrinos streaming through you every second,

you were aware of them weren't you, of course.

Well, we now have a map of where many of them come from.

New models using Gaia star data show stellar neutrinos

from nuclear fusion in massive young stars

across the Milky Way,

although denser toward galactic center.

Detected via giant Antarctic instruments

catching rare interactions,

this first comprehensive stellar neutrino map

filters solar noise, probes core processes,

and has led to potential new physics.

Wild, invisible messengers from our galaxies heart.

And that's a wrap for today,

from ISS drama to neutrino maps,

what a day in space news.

Thanks for joining us.

Subscribe, share, and we'll be back tomorrow.

And if you'd like to keep up with the evacuation story

unfolding on the ISS,

just visit our website

and check out our constantly updating news feed.

You'll find us at astronomydaily.io.

Clear skies, everyone.

And one final reminder to keep looking up.

Bye.

Time to day, the star is the toe.

The star is the toe.

The star is the toe.

The star is the toe.

The star is the toe.

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