— A digital watch that was chosen by many astronauts to wear on the space shuttle is getting a relaunch.

Seiko has announced the return of its A829 Sports 100 "Rotocall," a timepiece worn by 40 astronauts on their NASA missions (more than 85 if including a similar version with a circular, rather than octagonal, bezel). First introduced in 1982, the 2025 edition ships in November.

"This design is based on an archive 1980s Seiko digital quartz watch affectionately known by fans as the 'Rotocall,' worn by astronauts on space expeditions," reads the product description on the Seiko Boutique website.

After the Apollo program ended, NASA continued to issue Omega Speedmaster chronographs for its crew members' use, but also for the first time approved a number of other manufacturers' watches for spaceflight. Alongside options from Timex and Casio, the Seiko Sports 100 became one of the astronauts' favorites given the way the watch's display modes were accessed.

Unlike other digital models that used pushers (including the later NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster X-33), the Sports 100 switched between time, date, counter and alarm functions by rotating the bezel (hence the "Rotocall" nickname). The feature was particularly useful when the astronauts needed to wear bulky gloves.

Like the 40-year-old original, the new releases are offered in three colorways: black and yellow (SMGG17P1); blue and silvertone (SMGG21P1); and red and black (SMGG19P1).

According to "Watches Used in Space Exploration," a crowdsourced online database, the first Seiko A829 Sports 100 Rotocall were worn by at least three of the four crew members on STS-5, the first "operational" mission of the space shuttle in November 1982. Pilot Robert "Bob" Overmyer chose the A829-6029 red and black model with the same octagonal bezel on the upcoming re-release.

Other notable astronaut wearers included Story Musgrave aboard the maiden flight of Challenger, STS-6; Owen Garriott on STS-9; Bruce McCandless on STS-41B; Charlie Walker, the first industry payload specialist, on the first flight of Discovery, STS-41D; Kathy Sullivan on STS-41G (she later wore the same watch to dive to Challenger Deep, the lowest spot on Earth); William Shepherd on STS-27 (later, the first commander of the International Space Station); and John Grunsfeld on missions to the Mir space station and Hubble Space Telescope.

Grunsfeld is the last recorded astronaut to wear the A829-6029 in space, sporting the red and black model in March 2002. In total, the Sports 100 was spotted on 55 NASA space shuttle missions and one Russian Soyuz launch.

Some astronauts have sold their space-flown Seiko Sports 100 watches. Sullivan, for example, auctioned her "most vertical" watch at Sotheby's for $21,420 in 2021.

The reissued A829 Sports 100 Rotocall is now available for pre-order from Seiko's London Boutique for £480 (approximately $640 USD).