Stunned Californians have shared spectacular footage of the Crew-11 SpaceX Dragon spacecraft cutting a fiery path through the night sky as four astronauts returned to Earth as part of the 1st-ever medical evacuation from the International Space Station (ISS) on Jan. 15.

For the 1st time in the history of the International Space Station, an astronaut experienced a health issue that required NASA to end a mission early.

SpaceX Crew-11 splashed down safely in the Pacific after more than five months in orbit aboard the International Space Station. The four astronauts completed over 140 experiments and traveled nearly 71 million miles around Earth.

Four people from NASA's Crew-11 mission splashed down off San Diego, successfully completing five months aboard the International Space Station. The trip was cut short due to a medical issue.

The NASA International Space Station (ISS) crew that included a sick astronaut splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, California, early on Thursday morning. "Welcome home, Crew-11!" NASA said in an update, adding that the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft hit the on water on schedule at 12:41 a.m. PT.

All four Crew 11 fliers looked healthy and in good spirits on a space-to-ground television broadcast of the change of command ceremony with no indication of which astronaut may have experienced the undisclosed medical issue that triggered Crew 11's early departure.

NASA’s Crew-11 astronauts are returning to Earth after ISS undocking, with scheduled splashdown following a controlled medical evacuation, according to Space.com coverage.

The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft is set to splash down off Southern California following a rare medical evacuation from orbit.

Depending on the timing, NASA could launch a fresh crew to the space station while four other astronauts are flying around the moon.