Not the experience he was expecting, President Trump and the Artemis II astronauts had an awkward moment of silence during a recent live call.
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During the live call on Monday, Trump spoke with Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman, pilot Victor Glover, and astronauts Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen as they traveled back to Earth after their journey around the moon.
“You have a lot of courage doing what you’re doing, a lot of bravery… a lot of genius, but they’re very proud of you,” the world leader stated.
However, the call became awkward, with a 63-second pause.
Wiseman then grabbed the microphone to ask NASA administrator Jared Isaacman whether the call dropped.
“Administrator Isaacman, just get a quick comm check to make sure you guys are still on the line and we didn’t have a handover,” he said.
To which, Trump replied, “I am, yes, I am.”
The president said that the call may have been disconnected for a moment or that there was a reception delay.
“Yeah, I think we might’ve gotten cut off,” he continued. “It is a long distance, it’s a long ways. The reception’s been great. There’s a little bit of about a nine-second delay.”
Trump Then Talks About Wayne Gretzky During the Phone Call
Following the awkward moment, Trump praised Canadian astronaut Hansen by invoking Canadian hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.
“I don’t know what you heard, but I was just saying they’re very proud of your brilliant person from Canada,” he said to Hansen. “And Wayne Gretzky is a good friend of mine and he’s very proud and the prime minister I spoke to, they’re very, very honored that you have a courageous person from Canada.”
Trump then said, “I’m not sure if you heard me say that.”
The president then invited the Artemis II crew to the White House once they were back on Earth.
“I look forward to seeing you in the Oval Office… I’ll ask for your autograph,” he added. “Because I don’t really ask for autographs much, but you deserve that.”
Artemis II launched from the Kennedy Space Center for a 10-day trip to the far side of the moon. The crew is expected to return to Earth on Friday.