NASA astronaut Mike Fincke retires after 30 years

Mike Fincke trained across several different spacecraft over a 30-year NASA career. Few active astronauts have flown as widely or as often as he has. His last assignment was Crew-11, the flight that ended his time in orbit.

That last trip to orbit didn't go as planned either. A medical emergency partway through the mission cut it short, and NASA has said little about what happened. Fincke is downplaying it publicly, telling reporters he's still committed to exploration work. It's a reminder that even NASA's most experienced flyers face real physical risk on every launch.

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Who replaces three decades of hands-on experience like Fincke's? NASA is leaning harder on commercial partners like SpaceX and Boeing as its astronaut corps ages. Fewer veterans remain who trained across as many spacecraft as Fincke did. If Artemis moon missions ramp up as planned, NASA will need new astronauts ready fast. They'll have far less flight history to draw on.