Brendan Byrne

NASA did not share details about the issue or which crew member was affected.

The agency described their condition as stable.

The medical concern canceled a planned spacewalk today, and now NASA says it's exploring the possibility of bringing the crew home early.

That would cut short the Crew 11 mission, which launched the station back in August.

Crews typically spend six to eight months living and working on the station.

The crew consists of two NASA astronauts, a Japanese astronaut, and a Russian cosmonaut.

For NPR News, I'm Brendan Byrne in Orlando.

The missions will study the sun's solar winds, a continuous stream of particles that create the northern lights.

They're also a significant source of radiation in space, which could negatively affect satellites in orbit or our power grids here on Earth.

The three spacecraft, operated by NASA and NOAA, will help track and forecast these space weather events.

NASA's head of science, Nikki Fox, says along with helping us here on Earth, the spacecraft will help keep astronauts safe on missions to the moon and beyond.

The spacecraft were launched on SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket.

Just hours after liftoff, NASA confirmed all three are operating as planned.

For NPR News, I'm Brendan Byrne in Orlando.