Astronauts aboard Artemis II were seemingly left lost for words after an outpouring of praise from Donald Trump as they embarked on the world’s furthest crewed mission to the Moon.

The entertaining video showed a period of awkward radio silence in which none of the crew, which includes NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen, seemed to want to speak to the US president after his run of compliments. (Shocker, right?)

In fact, one of the astronauts then checked that the line was clear with Trump confirming he was still listening,  suggesting the American and Canadian crew had precious few words for the world leader.

Awkward scenes aboard Artemis II as Trump stops ranting and none of the astronauts have anything left to say to him, leading to extended dead air pic.twitter.com/4PjfPhfgY8

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 7, 2026

Artemis II crew get Trump’s typical condescending shite

It has to be said, when Trump gives compliments they have a prolific tendency to be pretty damn condescending to the recipient. This incident in space is no different as Trump focused his attention on Canadian astronaut Hansen.

After months of disgusting vitriol from Trump being directed at Canada and its leaders, it’s no surprise that his typical “I have friends” speech landed like a damp squib with the Artemis II crew.

Referring to Canada’s ice hockey player, Wayne Gretzky, who is largely regarded as the world’s greatest, Trump gushed:

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. 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.

Cue hay bales floating in gravity as it seemed the mic became a hot potato no one wanted to take. Instead of responding to Trump’s praise, one of the astronauts then asked NASA for a comms check to “make sure you guys are still on the line”.

Hilariously, like the kid no one wants to play with at a party and had forgotten exists, Trump then responded:

I am. Yes, I am.

Awkward as fuck, but equally, hilarious. We have to take the laughs wherever we can find them, right?

Comedy gold

The video has unsurprisingly inspired many laughs, with one X user commenting:

That microphone suddenly became a hot potato. Everyone’s like, “I’m not picking it up, you pick it up.”

“Nope, I picked it up last time.”

“Well, if I pick it up, can I call him a stupid fuck?”

“Yeah, don’t do that. He might shoot missiles at us upon reentry.”

Another person highlighted the laughter from ground control:

Gold! Especially the comms check and the unbridled laughter from ground control.

#SilenceIsBestResponseToTrump

One X account pointed out the cuts that Trump is imposing on NASA:

Bragging about what he has “done” for nasa yet just released a budget wanting to slash nasa’s budget by 23%.

Others have highlighted how inept Trump truly is.

How does he manage to fuck up even this call? Get on the horn, say some nice words, wish them well, say good night. That’s all he had to do. That’s it. He couldn’t even do that. https://t.co/QpxiwZ2KBk

— Charlotte Clymer (@cmclymer) April 7, 2026

In fact, the astronauts’ willingness to let Trump languish in that awkward moment only deepens the respect for this courageous team:

Shouts to the astronauts for being willing to make this weird. No need to dig him out of this hole https://t.co/Dztec2LKqz

— Duncan Smith (@DuncanSmithNBA) April 7, 2026

The pilot Victor Glover’s beautiful unifying comments potentially signal the points of diversion between the far-right president and the astronauts, who appear to choose love over hate.

Yet another generational statement from the Artemis II crew

During Artemis II, astronaut Victor Glover shared a view from deep space, seeing Earth as one fragile, unified world. He said space is amazing, but life on Earth is just as special and reminded everyone to appreciate… pic.twitter.com/F7Q5burj9r

— Complex (@Complex) April 5, 2026

A president nobody likes

It’s no surprise a Canadian might have little to say to the Epstein-class US president given the disgusting threats Trump has made to Canada.

Canada’s prime minister, Mark Carney, has responded defiantly to attempts by the US to bully and manipulate them into compliance, pointing to a “rupture” in US-Canada relations at Davos.

A rupture between these neighbouring countries that this radio silence appears to underscore.

If this video is anything to go by, Canadian citizens seem just as uninterested in what the president thinks. Honestly, it’s delicious.

Featured image via the Canary

By Maddison Wheeldon

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