Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen and U.S. President Donald Trump had a brief conversation Tuesday not long after the Artemis 2 spacecraft made its way around the far side of the moon and back into radio communication with the Earth.
NASA had set up a call between the president and the spacecraft, recalling the phone call between Richard Nixon and astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin during the first moonwalk in 1969.
Trump did not mention Canada by name as he listed the four astronauts and congratulated them on their record-breaking mission, which took humans farther from Earth than ever before.
“You really are modern day pioneers,” said Trump. “All of you. And one of them happens to be a neighbour. You know who that is, right? You have a special person over there, a neighbour. And we like our neighbour.”
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Hansen took the microphone about seven minutes into the 13-minute call, after the president asked the astronauts to describe the difference between the moon’s near and far sides.
Floating beneath the flags of Canada and the United States, Hansen explained that the far side is more cratered, with fewer “mares,” as the flat patches on the near side are known for their ocean-like appearance.
“And while I have the microphone, sir, I just want to thank you on behalf of Canada,” he added. “The space leadership you spoke of from America truly is extraordinary.”
He added that the decision to include Canada in the mission was an intentional choice, not a necessity.
“I know that’s a very … intentional decision to lead by example and to allow other countries like Canada to share our gifts and help you achieve these mutually beneficial goals like establishing a presence on the moon and eventually going to Mars,” he said. “And Canadians are so proud to be a part of this program.”
The president responded: “Well, I have to say I spoke to a very special person, Wayne Gretzky, who I think you know, the Great One, and I spoke to your prime minister and many other friends I have in Canada. They are so proud of you, and you have a lot of courage.”
He added: “I’m not sure if they’d want to do that. I’m not even sure if the Great One would want to do that, to be honest with you, but you have a lot of courage doing what you’re doing. A lot of bravery and a lot of genius. But they’re very, very proud of you.”
A full minute of silence followed, as the astronauts looked into the camera and started to fidget, until commander Reid Wiseman asked NASA’s administrator, Jared Isaacman, for “a quick comm check” to “make sure you guys are still on the line.”
Trump said he was still there and referred to “about a nine-second delay” in the transmission. (It’s closer to one second each way for messages to travel from the Earth out to the moon.)
“I was just saying they’re very proud of your brilliant person from Canada on the ship,” he said. “And Wayne Gretzky is a great friend of mine and he’s very proud of him, and the prime minister I spoke to, they’re very, very honoured that you have a courageous person from Canada. You have a lot of courageous people from Canada.”
Wiseman replied: “We do love our Jeremy Hansen. We love all our Canadian astronauts, Jenny Gibbons, Josh Kutryk. They are just great people and they’re such a welcome addition to our corps.”
Gibbons was Hansen’s backup on the Artemis mission and has also been working from mission control in Houston as a capcom or capsule communicator. Kutryk is not part of the mission but has been watching with interest and was in Florida for the launch on April 1.
Hansen gave a big smile, a thumbs-up and, to Trump’s promise of “a big salute on behalf of the American people and beyond that,” his own salute before the call ended.
Earlier in the mission, Hansen had radioed down to Earth the crew’s proposal to name a crater that straddles the near and far side of the moon Carroll, after Wiseman’s late wife, Carroll Taylor Wiseman, who died of cancer in 2020 at age 46. The couple have two children.
“At certain times of the moon’s transit around Earth we will be able to see this from Earth,” Hansen said, adding: “It’s a bright spot on the moon.” Wiseman gave Hansen a big hug that was soon joined by the other crew after the announcement.
The crew of Artemis 2 are due to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego at about 8 p.m. ET Friday.
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