« A Moonwatch Icon with a New Look »
With the Omega Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8, the Swiss manufacture with the Greek symbol of perfection in its logo unveiled a new special edition of the legendary Moonwatch at Baselworld 2018, and several more have followed to date (2023). It stands apart from the other versions of this model line, popular for decades, in more than just its outward appearance. New variants continue to win people over, as the hugely popular Omega Blue Side of the Moon in a ceramic case in the Uhrinstinkt shop proves. In this review, we introduce our readers to the Omega Dark Side of the Moon.
The First Look at the Far Side of the Moon
For many people, the first crewed Moon landing in the summer of 1969 was probably by far the most spectacular event in the history of spaceflight to date. And when people talk about the Speedmaster Professional as the "Moonwatch" today, most watch enthusiasts likely associate it with the day that gave us Neil Armstrong's famous quote. He said the Moon landing was one small step for a man, but one giant leap for mankind. Ever since, another mission by American astronauts, completed roughly six months earlier, has stood in the shadow of this momentous event – yet at the time, and before the first actual Moon landing, it attracted enormous attention around the world.
That mission was Apollo 8, during which the three astronauts on board became the first people in history to see the side of the Moon that faces away from Earth. And it is precisely this event that Omega's watchmakers honored on its 50th anniversary with the Dark Side of the Moon special edition. Thanks to its popularity, this successful watch line has since been expanded with numerous variants. In this review, we focus on the Dark Side of the Moon, but the 2023 lineup models Blue Side Of The Moon, Grey Side Of The Moon and White Side Of The Moon are also beautiful.
A Career as an Astronaut's Watch Begins
It is no coincidence that the now world-famous Omega Moonwatch Chronograph was along for the ride on both the first lunar orbit and the first Moon landing. Since the early 1960s, the US space agency NASA had been working intensively on preparing crewed space missions.
While assembling the necessary equipment, the space experts also went looking for wristwatches capable of withstanding the heavy stresses of flight and serving the astronauts as reliable, rugged timekeepers. On the one hand, they had to survive the intense physical forces of launch and landing unscathed; on the other, they had to keep running with undiminished precision in zero gravity. As with watches for pilots and flight navigators, good legibility and straightforward operation were also required. As part of the selection process, NASA requested sample pieces of potentially suitable watches from various manufacturers, which were then put through long, extensive testing.
Test After Test on the Way to Space
After the Speedmaster, to which Omega had added the designation Professional, outperformed the competition with its strong test results, the model became the only watch officially qualified by NASA for its crewed spaceflights on March 1, 1965. By then it had proven itself not only in tests on Earth but also on early missions in space. As early as October 3, 1962, Walter Schirra became the first to take one of these chronographs into space on his Mercury-Atlas 8 flight.
Apollo 8 – From Stopgap Solution to Spectacular Success
Apollo 8 was the second crewed orbital flight of NASA's Apollo program and also the first crewed flight ever made to another celestial body. The three-man crew of Frank Borman, William Anders and James Lovell launched from Florida on the morning of December 21, 1968. Three days later, they reached lunar orbit. The enormous worldwide attention the flight received was largely thanks to the television broadcast in which the three astronauts orbiting the Moon read the opening verses of the Book of Genesis as a Christmas message.
After the tenth lunar orbit, the return to Earth began on December 25. It ended on December 27 in the Pacific Ocean, where the Apollo capsule carrying Anders, Borman and Lovell was recovered by the USS Yorktown. What ended as a successful space mission had originally begun with a few problems. NASA had actually planned to use this mission to test the newly developed lunar module in high Earth orbit. But when it became clear in the summer of 1968 that the lunar module would not be ready in time and would not be available until February 1969 at the earliest, the entire mission plan had to be reworked.
Lunar Orbit as an Alternative Destination
Without the lunar module, the flight would have been a mere repeat of the Apollo 7 mission, and postponing it into 1969 would have risked delaying the entire lunar program and missing the goal of a Moon landing by the end of the decade. So the decision was made to send the already selected crew to the Moon aboard a Saturn V rocket to orbit it.
In addition to the sensational live broadcasts, numerous experiments were carried out during the mission, and above all, the lunar surface was photographed from a variety of perspectives.
Among other things, this flight produced one of the best-known photographs of the 20th century, showing Earth rising over the Moon. After their return, the astronauts were greeted enthusiastically wherever they appeared and were honored with a ticker-tape parade in New York.
The Omega Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8 in Our Review
The Moonwatch Chronograph in the special Omega Apollo 8 version presented at Baselworld 2018 commemorates the event that took place exactly half a century earlier. Unlike its predecessors, this watch is fitted with a special version of the legendary Moonwatch movement 1861, bearing the number 1869. To offer a view of the movement, the Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8 features a sapphire caseback as well as a skeletonized dial. The bridges and mainplate of the blackened movement have been specially decorated to recreate the surface of the Moon as realistically as possible.
While the dial side is kept light, reflecting the view of the lunar surface from Earth, the back of the Omega Apollo 8 depicts the dark far side of the Moon that cannot be seen from Earth. The 44.25-millimeter case is made of black zirconium oxide ceramic. Contrasting yellow accents appear on the chronograph functions as well as on the dial lettering. The perforations of the black leather strap also let yellow rubber shine through. The METAS-certified chronometer caliber is reliable and is available with various complications if desired. Fittingly popular given the theme, and visually convincing in our review, is the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Moonphase, which also includes the Blue Side of the Moon. Closer to the original is the Biel-based brand's Professional Moonwatch with the Omega 321 manual-winding chronograph movement, which was actually worn on the Moon.
