Astronauts on the International Space Station are still struggling to power up Dextre, the Canadian robot. Early Friday, Canadian engineers said they suspect that a design problem in the temporary cable that is supposed to provide power to Dextre until it is assembled prevents it from functioning properly.

Earlier, a software glitch was suspected, but it turned out that wasn't causing Dexter to be left out in the cold. The $200 million high-tech machine needs power to be kept warm, as its joints, limbs and electronics could become damaged if they are exposed to very low temperatures for days.

"I think at this point in time we're pretty confident that by 10 o'clock tonight we should have the answer to this particular question," said to AP Pierre Jean, Canada's acting space station program manager.

The Canadian Space Agency’s newest contribution to the station, the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator or Dextre,
It is the third and final component of the Mobile Servicing System developed by Canada for the ISS. With advanced stabilization and handling capabilities, Dextre can perform delicate human-scale tasks such as removing and replacing small exterior components. Operated by crew members inside the station or by flight controllers on the ground, it also is equipped with lights, video equipment, a stowage platform, and three robotic tools.

The worst case scenario means that Dextre would have to be disassembled and put back into the Space Station, which would prevent it from being permanently damaged.

Meanwhile, Mission Specialist Rick Linnehan and Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman returned to the ISS after a seven-hour spacewalk which attached an initial component of Japan's Kibo laboratory to the ISS. The installed section is the first pressurized section, Japanese Experiment Logistics Module (ELM-PS), of the future Kibo (Hope) Japanese module.

Kibo (pronounced key-boh means “hope”) is Japan’s first human-rated space facility. Kibo will be the largest experiment module on the space station, accommodating 31 racks in its pressurized section, including experiment, stowage, and system racks. Kibo is equipped with external facilities that can accommodate 10 exposed experiment payloads.

Kibo is a complex facility that enables several kinds of specialized functions. In total, Kibo consists of: Pressurized Module (PM) and Exposed Facility (EF), a logistics module attached to both the PM and EF and a Remote Manipulator System – Japanese Experiment Module Remote Manipulator System (JEMRMS.)