Omega x Swatch celebrates 60 years of “Moonwatch”
Omega x Swatch celebrates 60 years of “Moonwatch”
With the "MoonSwatch," of course. It happened in 1965 when Omega's "Speedmaster" was supposed to be the only watch to pass the tests of the American space agency NASA.
That this would be a big day for the brand, which was still part of the SSIH Group at the time, was certainly something one could have guessed, or at least hoped for. But the idea that a quartz version of this watch made of bioceramic would make a name for itself many decades later would have been relegated to the realm of legend in the 1960s.
The Omega x Swatch collaboration
In 1983, Nicolas Hayek formed the Swatch Group from the SSIH Group (Société Suisse pour l'Industrie Horlogère) and the SMH (Société de Microélectronique et d'Horlogerie SA). Today, his son, Nick Hayek, is the CEO of the group, which includes 16 watch brands, including the "plastic watch" Swatch, from the very beginning.
And this caused long lines and sometimes tumultuous scenes in front of the brand's boutiques worldwide on March 26, 2022. The reason was the launch of the "MoonSwatch" in 11 versions. Numerous versions of the Omega x Swatch collaboration have since hit the market, all made of Bioceramic and equipped with a quartz movement.
However, it still shares characteristic design elements with the mechanical original, including the asymmetrical case, the tachymeter scale with the dot above the 90, and the signature "Speedmaster" subdials.
"The '1965' is unlikely to trigger the kind of hype surrounding the first 'MoonSwatch' in 2022, nor the first successor versions, judging by the comments on the relevant social media channels. Rather, the 'MoonSwatch' seems to be transforming into a 'regular' collection for the brand. Probably the most successful one yet. The brand thus proves that it can continually reinvent itself, even in its 'advanced' age. And according to the brand itself, the 'MoonSwatch' also boosted the approach of the original 'Moonwatch.'"
Antje Heepmann (The Time Writer)
How Omega got to the moon
As part of the American space development program, NASA needed a timepiece for its space missions in the 1960s that would be reliable, precise, and as easy to use and read as possible. The goal: a qualified timepiece for all future manned space missions—in the midst of the space race.
As a government agency, NASA was obligated to issue a formal request for proposals. The US space agency required the watch manufacturers to submit production models. Omega submitted the 1964 Speedmaster model "ST105.003," Longines the "Wittnauer 235T," and the brand ....X the reference "6238."
NASA then subjected the chronographs to 11 test procedures specifically tailored to the US space agency's conditions. Of the three timepieces tested, only one received the prestigious flight qualification for all manned space missions and extravehicular activities on March 1, 1965: the "Speedmaster." It is considered the first watch on the moon, has achieved cult status as a "Moonwatch," and remains an important part of the Omega collection to this day.
The “MoonSwatch” celebrates the first “Moonwatch”
The new "MoonSwatch 1965" now celebrates this event entirely in gray: the 42-millimeter case, crown, and pushers of this non-limited chronograph are made of gray Bioceramic, while the gray Velcro strap features contrasting light gray decorative stitching and a Bioceramic loop—naturally in gray.
In all the grey, the white dial shines under domed, bio-based glass, surrounded by a black bioceramic bezel with a white tachymeter scale.
The timepiece features two subdials at 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock. The first displays the number 19 (normally 60), the other the number 65 (normally 10), alluding to the year 1965.
These subdials have been calibrated to 19 hours (subdial at 10 o'clock) and 65 minutes (subdial at 2 o'clock), which makes the chronograph read slightly differently than typical chronographs.
The numbers 19, 65 and 60 (on the sub-dial at 6 o'clock) also glow blue under UV light – complementing the Superluminova green on the hour markers, hour and minute hands.
The “MoonSwatch 1965” will be available from March 1st in selected Swatch stores: RRP €275.
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