Is awkward silence also golden? Trump's talk with Artemis II crew saw uneasy moments

Whoever invented the now oft-repeated proverb, 'Silence is Golden', never took in account the perils of awkward silence. For US President Donald Trump faced a similar situation while having a chat with the Artemis II crew aboard the spacecraft.

On Monday night, the crew achieved an extraordinary feat by becoming the first humans in history to travel the farthest from Earth. On their way back home, they received a call from the US President who lauded them for achieving this historic milestone.

American astronaut Christina Koch, Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Canadian Jeremy Hansen took a call for just over 12 minutes.

"Today, you’ve made history and made all America really proud,” Trump said and later added "America will be second to none in space and everything we're doing, and we will continue to lead the whole thing into the stars, this incredible journey into the stars."

However, the conversation became slightly 'awkward' after Hansen—who was hailed from Canadian Space Agency—thanked Trump on behalf of Canada.

Trump responded by mentioning Canada's NHL Hall-of-Famer Wayne Gretzky.

"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.

He went on to say, "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, a lot of genius, but they're very, very proud of you.”

After this monologue, complete silence descended in the spacecraft with the crew watching the microphone float by as one whole minute passed with no communication from either end.

Eventually, Reid Wiseman checked with NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman to see if the president was still on the line, to which both replied in the affirmative.

"Administrator Isaacman, just get a quick comm check, make sure you guys are still on the line and we didn't have a handover.”

“I am, yes,” Trump replied.

Wiseman responded with a thumbs up and continued to smile awkwardly.

Trump broke the silence and said, "I think we might have gotten cut off. It is a long distance, it’s a long ways. The reception’s been great.”

He also said, "I want to look forward to seeing you in the Oval Office," Trump said on the call. "I'll ask for your autograph, because I don't really ask for autographs much, but you deserve that."

The Artemis II crew surpassed the record  Apollo 13 in 1970 and set a record for the farthest any human had traveled from Earth. At farthest, point, they were 252,756 miles (406,771 kilometers) from Earth, according to NASA. The crew also observed a solar eclipse, as the moon passed in front of the sun.