posted 03-06-2023 09:02 AM               

This is nothing new to Omega. They produced Speedmasters with Telemeter Bezels in 1960 and 61. I was thinking about this last year as I watched a night launch of a Falcon 9. From the parking lot of the Holiday Inn Cocoa Beach I could see the sky light up at ignition and then, second later, I could hear the rocket roar. But how far away was I?

posted 03-08-2023 09:44 AM               

A practical 60 minutes bezel would be ideal and NASA had a set of these practical "60 minutes" bezels custom-made, which were worn by half-a-dozen astronauts during training between 1970 and 1975 (Scott, Worden, Brand).

posted 06-10-2023 05:12 PM               

A record-breaking vintage Omega Speedmaster is now the subject of an investigation and alleged criminal activity, including by three former Omega employees. The watch, a tropical Omega Speedmaster ref. 2915-1 "Broad Arrow," originally made headlines when it sold for a record-breaking $3.4 million at Phillips in November 2021.

As you might've seen, the news began in April when Perezcope published his findings related to the tropical Speedmaster. But on June 1, a report by Zurich newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) detailed a criminal series of events that resulted in a "Frankstein" watch made of disparate parts from various vintage Speedmasters appearing at auction. Omega has said the watch was the subject of an organized criminal effort by a group of conspirators, including three former employees, among them the former head of the Omega Museum and Brand Heritage. In separate statements, both Phillips and Omega have said they were the joint victims of organized criminal activity.

posted 03-17-2025 12:50 AM               

quote:

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Originally posted by SpaceAholic:
Has there been any examples of the Speedmaster Skywalker X-33 Solar Impulse flown to orbit?

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Old topic, but I noticed that an Omega Speedmaster X-33 Solar Impulse finally made it to orbit with Crew-10. NASA astronaut Nichole Ayres can be seen wearing one on a leather strap during preflight activities and during the welcome ceremony onboard ISS last night. I’m not 100% sure, but it also appears that she wore it over her suit glove for launch and docking on an extended strap.

Being a watch guy, I’m always on the lookout for who’s wearing what. Many astronauts and some cosmonauts have worn the X-33 Gen 2 on the outside of their pressure suits. Some U.S. astronauts flying on Soyuz have worn the X-33 Skywalker underneath their suits for launch and entry. As far as I know, Michael Lopez-Alegria is the only other astronaut to wear an X-33 Skywalker (non-Solar Impulse) on the outside of his SpaceX suit during the Axiom-1 launch.

posted 03-17-2025 11:05 AM               

Here are a couple from prior to the launch. Hard to get a good view from inside the Dragon, but it's obviously the same hands and case shape.

posted 12-06-2025 05:09 AM               

• Speedmaster X-33
  
• Speedmaster Flight Qualified
  
• Seamaster Diver 300M with Navy seals caseback

posted 01-18-2026 07:29 AM               

1. Which was the very first Speedmaster version and when was it launched ?

2. Which was the last Speedmaster version with Radium on the dial?

3. When NASA had selected the Speedmaster 105.003-63, it only needed one change... which?
   
   
4. Which were the three important items given by NASA astronauts during post-Gemini Project feedback on the Speedmaster?

5. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during a spaceflight mission?

6. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during a spaceflight mission by the Soviets?

7. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster 861 version used during a spaceflight mission?

8. When did Omega start to use the manned spaceflight theme in advertising and watch brochures?

9. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during an EVA - spacewalk?

10. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during an EVA - spacewalk by the Soviets?

11. Which four NASA astronauts used their Gold "Apollo 11 tribute" Speedmaster BA145.022-69 during NASA training ?

12. Which was the highest number of Omega Speedmaster chronograph simultaneously flown during a spaceflight mission?

13. Why did Apollo 11 Moonwalker Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin wear his NASA-issued Speedmaster on the right wrist?

14. Which NASA astronaut trained for 12 years without getting an Omega Speedmaster, not even for his actual spaceflight mission(s)?

15. When was the last EVA - spacewalk during which a manual winding Speedmaster was used?

posted 05-13-2026 08:40 AM               

Here’s What Happened To The NASA-Issued Speedmasters!

On April 27th, 1976, NASA made 55 out of 97 of its Omega Speedmaster chronographs available to the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) in Washington, DC. Then and now, these Omega watches were considered a collection with significant artifactual value!

posted 05-18-2026 03:01 PM               

It took some research because the questions were pretty specific. I bounced around the internet to Chuck Maddox's website and Philip Corneille's Moonwatch Universe site as well as the third edition of the "Moonwatch Only" book all about the Speedmaster.

1. Which was the very first Speedmaster version and when was it launched?

   If you mean launched as a product line then it was the CK2915 Broad Arrow introduced in 1957.

2. Which was the last Speedmaster version with Radium on the dial?

3. The last "mainline" Speedmaster reference that left the factory with radium lume is generally understood to be the late CK 2998 series (notably 2998 3/ 4/ 5), produced around 1961–1962. By the early to mid 1960s Omega began phasing out radium and introducing tritium.

4. When NASA had selected the Speedmaster 105.003-63, it only needed one change... which?

   NASA requested that Omega add the words "FLIGHT-QUALIFIED BY NASA FOR ALL MANNED SPACE MISSIONS" (along with related wording) to the caseback of the Speedmaster 105.003 63;

5. Which were the three important items given by NASA astronauts during post-Gemini Project feedback on the Speedmaster?

   NASA astronauts highlighted three key practical points in their post Gemini feedback on the Speedmaster: they wanted a more usable 60 minute timing bezel, clearer legibility (especially of elapsed minutes), and generally improved strap/attachment practicality over suits and gear.

6. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during a spaceflight mission?

   The first Speedmaster launched into Space was a CK2998 reference introduced in 1959 and worn by Schirra on October 3rd, 1962.

7. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during a spaceflight mission by the Soviets?

   The earliest clearly documented use of an Omega Speedmaster by Soviet crews in space appears to be the Speedmaster Mark III (calibre 1040) worn by cosmonaut Nikolai Rukavishnikov on Soyuz 33 in 1979

8. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster 861 version used during a spaceflight mission?

   Ron Evans carried an 861 as a personal watch during Apollo 17.

9. When did Omega start to use the manned spaceflight theme in advertising and watch brochures?

   According to Chuck Maddox, Omega started advertising the Speedmaster in Space in 1966.

10. Which was the very first Omega Speedmaster version used during an EVA - spacewalk?

    Ed White used two Speedmaster 105.003-63 reference on the left wrist of his EVA suit on June 3rd, 1965.

11. Which four NASA astronauts used their Gold "Apollo 11 tribute" Speedmaster BA145.022-69 during NASA training?

    Pete Conrad, Gene Cernan, Buzz Aldrin and Al Bean. I used one in training, but that was practice for a party.

12. Which was the highest number of Omega Speedmaster chronograph simultaneously flown during a spaceflight mission?

    Five Speedmaster chronographs carried on Apollo 17. But, if the X-33 is included then it might be eight on STS-61A.

13. Why did Apollo 11 Moonwalker Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin wear his NASA-issued Speedmaster on the right wrist?

    Buzz is left handed and most left-handed people were their watches on their right wrist, but also the EVA checklist was sewn on the left EVA glove gauntlet and the watch would have covered some of the checklist instructions.

14. When was the last EVA - spacewalk during which a manual winding Speedmaster was used?

    According to noted space watch historian, Philip Corneille, the last well-documented EVA with a manual-wind Speedmaster was the April 18, 2022 ISS spacewalk by Oleg Artemyev. NASA Astronauts stopped using watches on EVAs after 1993.