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But he didn’t get to explain to the person that his joke was only the beginning of a message intended for his loved ones to say Merry Christmas.

He had called a wrong number.

The first British European Space Agency astronaut tweeted this:

"I'd like to apologise to the lady I just called by mistake saying 'Hello, is this planet Earth?' - not a prank call...just a wrong number!"

The 43-year-old hasn't said which carrier he was using.

Peake has been exploring how the body reacts in space and a tea-making process in zero gravity, according to The Associated Press.

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A Korean Air plane takes off from Incheon International Airport in South Korea on Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. The plane is chartered to bring back Korean workers detained in an immigration raid in Georgia. (Yonhap via AP)

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