Mike Fincke retires from NASA following space medical emergency

Veteran astronaut Mike Fincke is retiring from NASA after a career spanning nearly 30 years. His departure follows a medical emergency during his most recent mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS) as part of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission.

During the mission, Fincke experienced a mysterious medical episode where he lost the ability to speak for approximately 20 minutes. While he clarified that the incident was not a stroke or heart attack and is likely related to the space environment, the event necessitated an unprecedented early return of his crew to Earth for medical evaluation.

Fincke joined NASA in 1996 and has completed four space missions, accumulating 549 days in orbit and performing nine spacewalks. Despite his retirement, he expressed a desire to continue contributing to space exploration by training the next generation of engineers and explorers for future missions to the Moon and Mars.