{"id":18885,"date":"2017-07-07T20:39:48","date_gmt":"2017-07-07T12:39:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/nasa-says-its-ok-for-vp-mike-pence-to-touch-that-hardware-marked-do-not-touch\/"},"modified":"2017-07-07T20:39:48","modified_gmt":"2017-07-07T12:39:48","slug":"nasa-says-its-ok-for-vp-mike-pence-to-touch-that-hardware-marked-do-not-touch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/nasa-says-its-ok-for-vp-mike-pence-to-touch-that-hardware-marked-do-not-touch\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA says it\u2019s OK for VP Mike Pence to touch that hardware marked \u2018Do Not Touch\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<figure id=\"attachment_347443\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-347443\" style=\"width: 630px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full-width wp-image-347443\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/170707-pence-nasa-2-630x416.jpg\" alt=\"Mike Pence &quot;Do Not Touch&quot; picture\" width=\"630\" height=\"416\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/170707-pence-nasa-2-630x416.jpg 630w, https:\/\/cdn.geekwire.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/170707-pence-nasa-2.jpg 720w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 630px) 100vw, 630px\"><figcaption data-nosnippet=\"\" id=\"caption-attachment-347443\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Even Vice President Mike Pence couldn\u2019t resist tweeting a Photoshopped version of the \u201cDo Not Touch\u201d photo snapped during his visit to Kennedy Space Center. (@VP Mike Pence via Twitter)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>You know that viral photo of Vice President Mike Pence putting his hand on a piece of space hardware marked with a \u201cDo Not Touch\u201d sign? Don\u2019t worry about it, NASA says.<\/p>\n<p>The picture, snapped by news photographers on Thursday during Pence\u2019s tour of NASA\u2019s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, spread like Photoshopped wildfire around the internet. It\u2019s easy to see why: Pence looks like someone blatantly caught with his hand in the figurative cookie jar:<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-0\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 76px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-0&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=true&amp;id=883138436345061377&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;sessionId=dffc09030e01e1411ec24e10975f8242aa764c2f&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"883138436345061377\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-conversation=\"none\" data-lang=\"en\" data-twitter-extracted-i1782802403981173477=\"true\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">When the sign says \u201cDo Not Touch\u201d but the VP is handsy. pic.twitter.com\/uTlmsSRg7c<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Robert McNees (@mcnees) July 7, 2017<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>https:\/\/twitter.com\/CatherineQ\/status\/883201305656922112<\/p>\n<p>Twittering wags went to work on the subject, as chronicled on Time\u2019s website:<\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"\/\/s.imgur.com\/min\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><iframe allowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-Ii0Ns-true-540\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/a\/Ii0Ns\/embed?pub=true&amp;ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;w=540\" id=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-Ii0Ns\" style=\"height: 500px; width: 540px; margin: 10px 0px; padding: 0px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"\/\/s.imgur.com\/min\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><iframe allowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-ryPkS-true-540\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/a\/ryPkS\/embed?pub=true&amp;ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;w=540\" id=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-ryPkS\" style=\"height: 500px; width: 540px; margin: 10px 0px; padding: 0px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"\/\/s.imgur.com\/min\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><iframe allowfullscreen=\"true\" mozallowfullscreen=\"true\" webkitallowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-RSv0N-true-540\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/imgur.com\/a\/RSv0N\/embed?pub=true&amp;ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;w=540\" id=\"imgur-embed-iframe-pub-a-RSv0N\" style=\"height: 500px; width: 540px; margin: 10px 0px; padding: 0px;\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"\/\/s.imgur.com\/min\/embed.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-1\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 621px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-1&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=true&amp;id=883225849440247808&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;sessionId=dffc09030e01e1411ec24e10975f8242aa764c2f&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"883225849440247808\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Even Pence got into the act:<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-2\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 578px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-2&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=883408689285214211&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;sessionId=dffc09030e01e1411ec24e10975f8242aa764c2f&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"883408689285214211\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-3\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 602px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-3&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=true&amp;id=883408914196332544&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;sessionId=dffc09030e01e1411ec24e10975f8242aa764c2f&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"883408914196332544\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., played along:<\/p>\n<p><iframe id=\"twitter-widget-4\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" allowtransparency=\"true\" allowfullscreen=\"true\" class=\"\" style=\"position: static; visibility: visible; width: 550px; height: 672px; display: block; flex-grow: 1;\" title=\"X Post\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/embed\/Tweet.html?creatorScreenName=b0yle&amp;dnt=true&amp;embedId=twitter-widget-4&amp;features=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%3D%3D&amp;frame=false&amp;hideCard=false&amp;hideThread=false&amp;id=883417608451747841&amp;lang=en&amp;origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geekwire.com%2F2017%2Fnasa-says-ok-vp-mike-pence-touch-space-hardware-despite-not-touch-sign%2F&amp;sessionId=dffc09030e01e1411ec24e10975f8242aa764c2f&amp;siteScreenName=geekwire&amp;theme=light&amp;widgetsVersion=6a3ad42b224df%3A1778106238597&amp;width=550px\" data-tweet-id=\"883417608451747841\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><script async=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>This afternoon, NASA finally absolved Pence of blame.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe signs are there as a day-to-day reminder, including the one visible on the titanium Forward Bay Cover for the Orion spacecraft,\u201d Jen Rae Wang, NASA\u2019s associate administrator for communications, said in a statement. \u201cProcedures require the hardware to be cleaned before tiles are bonded to the spacecraft, so touching the surface is absolutely OK. Otherwise, the hardware would have had a protective cover over it like the thermal heat shield, which was nearby.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>NASA underscored the OK-ness of it all in a tweet: \u201cWe were going to clean it anyway. It was an honor to host you!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>To which Pence had a two-word Twitter response: \u201cThanks, NASA!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s probably for the best that NASA went easy on Pence \u2013&nbsp;considering that he\u2019s now heading the National Space Council, which will be determining NASA\u2019s future course.<\/p>\n<p>For what it\u2019s worth, the forward bay cover is designed to fit over the top portion of the Orion deep-space crew capsule during most of its flight. It\u2019s supposed to spring off the spacecraft during descent to enable parachute deployment.<\/p>\n<p>The cover, along with the rest of the capsule, is being prepared for a ride beyond the moon and back atop NASA\u2019s Space Launch System during the uncrewed EM-1 test flight, which is due to launch in 2019 or 2020. So there should be plenty of time for NASA to wipe off Pence\u2019s palm print.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a video showing the forward bay cover undergoing jettison tests:<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=hvfJzNnrSBs<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Even Vice President Mike Pence couldn\u2019t resist tweeting a Photoshopped version of the \u201cDo Not Touch\u201d photo snapped during his visit to Kennedy Space Center. (@VP Mike Pence via Twitter) You know that viral photo of Vice President Mike Pence putting his hand on a piece of space hardware marked with a \u201cDo Not Touch\u201d [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[428,1974,190,640,4467,5373],"class_list":["post-18885","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-kennedy-space-center","tag-mike-pence","tag-nasa","tag-orion","tag-politics","tag-viral"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18885"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18885"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18885\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18885"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18885"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18885"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}