June 2, 2026

— Astronaut Ed White is half past the hour. Earth is at noon when high in the sky. Or, if you prefer, Mars moves every 3,600th revolution of the moon outside of the cupola's windows.

The different time displays are all a part of Xeric's new Asterisk Space Mission Collection, five distinct, limited edition watches that use different movements to bring to life the space art of a celebrated illustrator.

"The Space Missions Collection draws inspiration from some of humanity's most iconic journeys beyond Earth, channeling the ambition and wonder of space exploration into a bold, design-forward series," Xeric describes on the Kickstarter website, where the company is first taking pre-orders for the new timepieces. "Through Peter Greenwood's striking visual language, each piece brings the spirit of space exploration home to you."

Four of Greenwood's five watch designs capture scenes from the first 60 years of human spaceflight. The first U.S. extravehicular activity (EVA) in 1965 is depicted on the "Gemini 4 Spacewalk." The "Apollo 11 Moonwalk" shows the first human on the moon in 1969.

NASA's Curiosity or Perseverance six-wheeled science laboratory is on the "Mars Rover" and "Space Shuttle" captures the winged orbiter mid-launch.

The fifth watch in the collection, "The Next Chapter," envisions a future astronaut aboard a spacecraft on approach to the red planet.

Space Missions Collection. Click to enlarge video in new pop-up window. (Asterisk)

Xeric chose Greenwood for his use of negative space and perspective, providing new viewpoints on the iconic scenes. His portfolio includes TIME and Hollywood Reporter covers and has counted Apple and Volkswagen among his other clients.

What sets these watches apart are the way in which the time is incorporated into Greenwood's art. For example, on Gemini 4 Spacewalk, the spinning capsule is the hour hand and the floating spacewalker (White) tracks the minutes. On Apollo 11 Moonwalk, Earth tracks the hours during the day and an Apollo command module does the same at night. The minutes appear on the astronaut's helmet.

The automatic Space Shuttle features a "jump hour," with the next hour jumping into place while the minutes rotate into view in a break through the launch plume. The sun (in red and orange) tracks the hours on Mars Rover, with the minutes displayed on a dial on the front of the mobile explorer.

The cupola's windows serve as hour indicator lines on The Next Chapter. The minutes are visible on a panel and the moon ticks seconds as it orbits the dial.

All of the watches feature a 38mm stainless steel dial with a sapphire glass crystal and leather strap. All but the Space Shuttle have quartz movements.

Each model is limited to 9,999 individually-numbered pieces, but on Kickstarter are further restricted to only 80 available. Pre-order prices are discounted by 26 to 29 percent off retail, ranging from $199 to $249 (full MSRP will be $275 to $350).

The Space Mission Collection is Xeric's fourth collection from its sister brand Asterisk Watches. Xeric also has a NASA Collection, which includes the use of the agency's insignia or logotype and celebrate mission anniversaries and ongoing programs with more subtle design nods.