(CNN) -- "Mohawk Guy [1]," a Mars rover flight director, isn't just a social media sensation -- he made an impression on President Barack Obama, too.

"I, in the past, thought about getting a mohawk myself, but my team keeps on discouraging me," Obama told scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in a phone call Monday broadcast on NASA TV.

"And now that he's received marriage proposals and thousands of new Twitter followers, I think that I'm going to go back to my team and see if it makes sense," he said to the sound of laughter from dozens of NASA employees.