\n Longtime NASA astronaut Mike Fincke is stepping away from his role at the space agency. The news comes months after he experienced a medical emergency aboard the International Space Station, which forced a premature end to the journey for him and three crewmates.\n <\/p>\n
\n Fincke\u2019s last day at the space agency is Wednesday, NASA said<\/a> in a news release.\n <\/p>\n \n Although he is leaving NASA, Fincke said he remains \u201cdeeply committed to the work of exploration.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cI am profoundly grateful to my crewmates, the teams on the ground, our international partners, and the families who make this work possible,\u201d Fincke, who first joined the astronaut corps in 1996, said in a statement. \u201cI am excited to carry those lessons forward and help prepare the next generation of engineers, explorers, and leaders. Together, we will return humanity to the Moon, travel to Mars, journey outward to the planets and moons beyond Earth, and someday reach for the stars \u2013 all while caring for Earth, the most beautiful planet in our solar system.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n Neither Fincke nor NASA provided details about what he plans to do next.\n <\/p>\n \ud83d\ude80 Get Countdown newsletter<\/p>\n Sign up for updates from CNN Science<\/a> on the total solar eclipse and whenever there\u2019s a must-see, out-of-this-world expedition. Plus, take deep dives into the future of space exploration.<\/p>\n \n Over the course of his three-decade career, Fincke flew four missions to space, accumulating 549 days in orbit \u2014 the fourth highest among his NASA colleagues \u2014 and completed nine spacewalks.\n <\/p>\n \n The vast majority of his days in space were spent aboard the football-field-size ISS. His last stay at the orbital outpost garnered global attention when Fincke was overcome with a mysterious ailment, losing the ability to speak for roughly 20 minutes, Fincke later told news outlets, including the AP<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n The ordeal prompted an urgent response from NASA. Fincke and his fellow SpaceX Crew-11 astronauts \u2014 NASA astronaut Zena Cardman, Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, and cosmonaut Oleg Platonov of the Russian space agency, Roscosmos \u2014 returned home from the space station in mid-January, weeks earlier than expected.\n <\/p>\n \n The group\u2019s sudden departure marked the first time in history NASA had to cut short an ISS staffing mission for health reasons. At the time, the space agency did not disclose which astronaut had the medical concern or reveal the nature of the issue, prompting a wave of speculation.\n <\/p>\n \n Typically, NASA does not share details of medical emergencies or name the astronaut involved to protect their privacy, but Fincke identified himself weeks after the incident.\n <\/p>\n \n In an interview with AP, Fincke said that the medical event remains a mystery that NASA and medical researchers are working to solve. His lost ability to speak did not feel like choking, Fincke said, but his crewmates \u201cdefinitely saw that I was in distress\u201d and responded quickly. \u201cIt was all hands on deck within just a matter of seconds.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n NASA had said during the crew\u2019s journey home that the affected astronaut was in stable condition. And Fincke noted in a February statement<\/a> that the agency had determined the crew should return to Earth to take advantage of \u201cadvanced medical imaging not available on the space station.\u201d\n <\/p>\n \n The ISS is stocked with medical equipment, though it does not have all the tools typical of an emergency room.\n <\/p>\n