Omega Speedmaster

Omega Speedmaster is a brand of chronograph wristwatches produced by the Omega Watch Company. Many different watches have been marketed under the Speedmaster name over the years. The manual winding Speedmaster Professional or "Moonwatch" is the most well-known and longest-produced; it was worn during the first American spacewalk during Gemini 4 and was the first watch worn on the moon during Apollo 11. The Speedmaster Professional remains one of several watches qualified by NASA for spaceflight and is still the only one so qualified for EVA. The Speedmaster line also includes a multitude of other models, including analog-digital and automatic mechanical watches.

 

Early development

The Speedmaster was not originally designed for space exploration. Instead, it was introduced in 1957 as a sports and racing chronograph, complementing Omega's position as the official timekeeper for the Olympic Games. The first Speedmaster model, the reference CK 2915 was released in 1957. It was powered by the Omega Calibre 321, developed in 1946 by Albert Piguet of Lemania, which had been acquired in 1932 by Omega's parent company, SSIH. The "Speedmaster" name was coined from the model's novel tachymeter scale bezel (in brushed stainless steel) and by the convention set by prior Omega brands Seamaster and Railmaster. The model established the series's hallmark 12-hour, triple-register chronograph layout, domed Plexiglas crystal, and simple, high-contrast index markers; but, unlike most subsequent Speedmaster models, it used Omega's Broadarrow hand set. In 1959, a second version, CK 2998, was released with a black aluminum tachymeter bezel and alpha hands. This was again updated in 1963 by references ST 105.003 with straight baton hands and ST 105.012 with an asymmetrical case to protect the chronograph pushers and crown.

 

Use in Space

Qualification tests

Three years before the Speedmaster's official qualification, Wally Schirra took his personal CK 2998 aboard Mercury-Atlas 8 (Sigma 7) on October 3, 1962. That same year, per an anecdote repeated by Omega press materials, trade publications, and NASA itself, a number of commercial chronograph wristwatches were furtively purchased from Corrigan's, a Houston jeweler, to evaluate their use for the Gemini and Apollo Programs. James Ragan, a former NASA engineer responsible for Apollo flight hardware testing, has downplayed this story, calling it a "complete invention". Instead, bids were officially solicited of several brands already familiar to astronauts, including Breitling, Rolex, and Omega, as well as others that produced mechanical chronographs. Hamilton submitted a pocket watch and was disqualified from consideration, leaving three contenders: Rolex, Longines-Wittnauer, and Omega. These watches were subjected to tests under extreme conditions:

• High temperature: 48 hours at 71°C followed by 30 minutes at 93°C
• Low temperature: Four hours at -18°C
• Temperature cycling in near-vacuum: Fifteen cycles of heating to 71°C for 45 minutes, followed by cooling to -18°C for 45 minutes at 10−6 atm
• Humidity: 250 hours at temperatures between 20°C and 71°C at relative humidity of 95%
• Oxygen environment: 100% oxygen at 0.35 atm and 71°C for 48 hours
• Shock: Six 11ms 40 G shocks from different directions
• Linear acceleration: from 1 to 7.25G within 333 seconds
• Low pressure: 90 minutes at 10−6 atm at 71°C followed by 30 minutes at 93°C
• High pressure: 1.6 atm for one hour
• Vibration: three cycles of 30 minutes vibration varying from 5 to 2000hz with minimum 8.8G impulse
• Acoustic noise: 30 minutes at 130db from 40 to 10,000hz

Apollo program

To reinforce the association with astronauts, Omega also began using the "Professional" appellation for existing Speedmaster models after Gemini 4. In 1966, Speedmaster reference 105.012 was updated to reference 145.012. These two models would be the two Speedmaster references known to have been worn on the moon by Apollo astronauts, the original "moonwatches." Speedmasters were used throughout the early manned Apollo program, and reached the moon with Apollo 11. Ironically, these and prior models are informally known as "Pre-moon" Speedmasters, since their manufacture predate the moon landings and lack the inscription subsequent models carry: "The First and Only Watch Worn on the Moon".

In 1970, after Apollo 13 was crippled by the rupture of a Service Module oxygen tank, Jack Swigert's Speedmaster was famously used to precisely time the critical 14-second Mid-Course Correction 7 burn using the Lunar Module's Reaction Control System, which allowed for the crew's safe return. In recognition of this, Omega was awarded the Snoopy Award by the Apollo 13 astronauts, "for dedication, professionalism, and outstanding contributions in support of the first United States Manned Lunar Landing Project."

In 1971, Apollo 15 commander David Scott's issued Speedmaster lost its Plexiglas crystal during EVA-2. For EVA-3, the final lunar surface EVA, he wore a Waltham chronograph watch that he had agreed to evaluate for the company. Because of the commercial interests involved and the revelation of the Apollo 15 postage stamp incident, NASA withheld Waltham's name for years afterward. Therefore, while the Speedmaster was the first watch worn on the moon, it is not the only one, as Omega often claims on its watches and in marketing materials.

In addition to issued crew watches, Apollo 17 carried an additional Speedmaster to lunar orbit as part of the Heat Flow and Convection Experiment conducted by Command Module pilot Ronald Evans. This watch was sold for $23,000 at a Heritage Auction in 2009.

 

 

 

Ferrari

Ferrari S.p.A. is an Italian sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1929, as Scuderia Ferrari, the company sponsored drivers and manufactured race cars before moving into production of street-legal vehicles as Ferrari S.p.A. in 1947. Throughout its history, the company has been noted for its continued participation in racing, especially in Formula One, where it has had great success. Ferrari road cars are generally seen as a symbol of luxury and wealth.