As the world shuns Russia, what happens to the International Space Station?

In today’s Big Story podcast, the International Space Station has long been well above Earth’s political squabbles. But since Russia invaded Ukraine, and most of the world began sanctioning Putin’s regime, it seems less likely it will remain that way. On the station, Russian and American (and other countries) astronauts work together to research and problem solve. But on Earth, the head of Russia’s space agency says the U.S. will be to blame for the death of the space station.

Can the space station even function without both sides cooperating? Does either side want it to, really? And with private companies like SpaceX pushing hard for increasing space station access and work with space agencies — are we on the cusp of an entirely new era for humans in outer space?

GUEST: Ivan Semeniuk, science reporter, The Globe and Mail

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