Russia and the US will continue working together on the International Space Station (ISS), Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday, citing a senior official at Russia's space agency Roscosmos.

In June, Roscosmos head Dmitry Rogozin said Russia would withdraw from the space station in 2025. Moscow wanted the US to lift sanctions on the space sector, which it said was hampering Russian satellite launches.

Russia's ISS incident 

Last month, engines on Russia's Nauka science lab switched on three hours after docking with the ISS, pushing the whole space station out of position for 47 minutes before NASA ground crew managed to fix the problem.

Russia said a software failure caused thrusters on its new lab module to switch on and move the International Space Station off course after the new module docked. A "human factor" could have caused the prolem, said Rogozin.

The Nauka, which means "Science" in Russian, will add a new science lab and living quarters to the ISS complex.

The 22-ton (20-metric-ton) module is fitted with its own life support system that is now hermetically sealed onto the space station.

Rogozin said a new Russian space module would be launched to the ISS in November.

Boeing's Starliner capsule was scheduled to send an unmanned test flight from Cape Canaveral to the space station on Wednesday. 

tg/aw (AFP, Reuters)