How the Moonwatch made it to space, and why you need it on your wrist
In partnership with Watchfinder & Co., we’ve assembled a handful of iconic and limited Speedmasters.
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A few weeks ago something amazing happened in Geneva. A 1957 reference 2915-1 Omega Speedmaster was sold by Phillips for an incredible sum; a cool 3.1 million Swiss Francs, making it far and away the most expensive Speedmaster ever sold at auction. What makes this result even more remarkable is that it hadn’t been to space. After all, the story of manned space flight is the underlying beat behind the story of the Speedy, a tale which elevates this manually wound chronograph into the realm of ‘icon’. And while the history of the Speedmaster is long and varied, its fame rests on a single pivotal moment in time, when it was worn on the wrists of the Apollo 11 astronauts and became, according to that famous caseback inscription; the first watch worn on the moon, or, more popularly, The Moonwatch.
Speedmaster Origins
The Omega Speedmaster ref. CK2915
While it was the moon that made the watch famous, the Speedmaster story predates its journey into space by a good few years. Not that it was initially intended for such extra-atmosphere explorations. In fact, Omega released the first generation Speedmaster — reference CK2915 — in 1957, alongside the brand’s other two distinguished tool watches, the Seamaster 300 and the Railmaster. The earliest incarnations of the Speedy (as it’s affectionately referred to) was intended as a wrist-computer, where the stop-watch functionality combined with the tachymeter scale meant that the Speedmaster was designed as a purposeful tool, built with precision in mind, be that on the track, in the lab or the cockpit.
Omega Speedmaster ad for the 1957 CK2915 (Image: omegawatches.com)
Omega Speedmaster CK2998 311.32.40.30.02.001
The Speedmaster in Space
A Speedmaster CK2998 on the wrist of Mercury Atlas 8 Astronaut Wally Schirra (Image: NASA.gov)
While the Speedmaster strapped onto Buzz Aldrin’s wrist on the 24th of July, 1969 is the watch that takes the prize as THE first watch on the moon (that watch, by the way is unaccounted for, as per protocol, Aldrin sent it to the Smithsonian Institution – but it never arrived), it’s not the first time the Omega Speedmaster has made it to space. That honour goes to a watch that astronaut Wally Schirra purchased with his own money, and wore during the Mercury-Atlas 8 mission which saw him orbit the earth six times in the Sigma 7 spacecraft. The reference Schirra wore was the CK2998, produced in eight variants from 1959 through to 1963, what is most important to note about this reference is the transition to a black aluminium bezel insert and narrower ‘Alpha’ handset.
Omega Speedmaster Apollo 310.20.42.50.01.001
Flight-Certified
NASA’s test engineer, Jim Ragan putting the Speedmaster through its paces at NASA
While privately purchased watches like Schirra’s were the first Speedmasters in space, it wasn’t until 1964 that NASA saw the need for a space-ready chronograph. And so, NASA sent out requests to around 10 brands to supply watches for testing. Only a few brands responded, and in the end received NASA chronographs from Omega, Longines and Rolex. These watches were submitted to 11 different tests, including tests at extreme temperatures, pressure, humidity, tests in pure oxygen environments, shock, acceleration, vibration and a range of others simulating the harsh conditions expected in space. The watch that passed all these tests, and was qualified by NASA was the Omega Speedmaster 105.003, a third generation watch with white baton hands.
An Omega Speedmaster ref. 105.003 (Image: Phillips)
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch 311.30.42.30.01.005
First Watch on the Moon
Interior view of the Apollo 11 Lunar Module showing astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. wearing his Speedmaster ref. ST 105.012 on his wrist (Image: spaceflight.nasa.gov)
Finally, five years after this certification, Buzz Aldrin stepped out of the Apollo 11’s Lunar Module with a Speedmaster reference 105.012, and cemented the Speedmaster’s status as the First Watch on The Moon. Shortly after Apollo 11 landed back on terra firma Omega (along with the rest of the world) celebrated the achievement with the first limited edition Speedmaster, a solid gold model, reference BA145.022-69, of which the first 28 were presented to President Nixon, Vice-President Agnew and all currently serving Astronauts. Later Astronauts were also presented with this model, and a number were produced up until 1973 — in total 1014 were made. It is this model that Omega chose to re-create to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the moon landing with the 2019 Speedmaster Apollo XI 50th Anniversary edition, which saw the introduction of Moonshine Gold.
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch 311.90.44.51.03.001
The Snoopy Story
The 2015 Silver Snoopy Omega Speedmaster
The story of the Speedmaster in Space doesn’t end with Apollo 11, as the watch is a functional piece of kit to this very day. But one famous incident deserves special mention: the role of the Speedmaster in the dramatic Apollo 13 mission. After an on-board explosion 200,000 miles from earth, Apollo 13 was stranded in space — and, after hasty jury-rigged repairs completed, a Speedmaster was used to time the crucial 14-second rocket burn that ensured safe re-entry into earth’s atmosphere. This achievement earned the Speedmaster a ‘Snoopy’ award (Charles Schulz’s cartoon dog being something of an unofficial mascot for the Apollo missions), given to outstanding contributions from personnel and contractors. It’s for this reason that Omega has produced two ‘Snoopy’ Speedmasters, one in 2003 and one more recently in 2015.