Vice President Mike Pence vowed Thursday to make space exploration a priority for the U.S., including the conquering of another planet.

"Our nation will return to the Moon and we will put American boots on the face of Mars," Pence said during remarks at the Cape Canaveral headquarters in Florida.

VP Pence at Kennedy Space Center: "Our nation will return to the moon and we will put American boots on the face of Mars." pic.twitter.com/441d5eOLzY— This Week (@ThisWeekABC) July 6, 2017

It's not clear whether the comment was scripted or a slip of the tongue since that specific phrasing has never been used before to describe space travel.

The statement combined part of the military phrase of "putting boots on the ground."

Pence spent Thursday at the John F. Kennedy Space Center, touring the facility and meeting employees, while Trump traveled from Poland to Germany for the G-20 summit.