« Introducing the Limited Edition! »
The CK2998 is both a blue beauty and a technical marvel. Beating inside it is the prestigious caliber 1861, the very movement that powered the first Moonwatch. Here we present this timeless icon, limited to 2998 pieces.
James Bond wore Omega watches on his wrist as he jetted around the world to save it. Omega chronographs were once used to time the Olympic Games before quartz technology ushered in the era of electronic timekeeping. At the 2012 Games in London, the timing equipment supplied by Omega weighed a full 400 tons. Yet hardly any other watch has traveled as far as the Omega Speedmaster Professional. The rugged chronograph was tested by NASA and deemed the only model good enough to accompany the astronauts on their flight to the Moon and back to Earth again. Ever since, it has carried the name "Moonwatch", and rightly so. It was the first watch to actually see our lunar neighbor.
To this day, the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch runs with such discipline and reliability that it continues to delight enthusiasts. Whether on the Moon, in a spacesuit and space capsule, or with solid ground underfoot back home: inside it, the legendary hand-wound caliber 1861 does its job for a full 48 hours once wound.
The famous movement in a limited edition
Unveiled at Baselworld in 2016, the 2,998 pieces of the CK2998 Limited Edition are fitted with the same movement that already served solidly and reliably in the first Moonwatch, lending the watch a very special aura.
At first glance, the new Omega Moonwatch CK2998 Limited Edition may not look much like the 1959 original; after all, the chronograph wasn't made in a white-and-blue color scheme back then. The original Moonwatch also came on a stainless steel bracelet, while the Limited Edition is worn on a blue leather strap with white decorative stitching. Still, an attentive Speedmaster fan will surely have spotted the key features that already drew attention on the classic watch: the stainless steel case of the CK2998 has a similar shape, it features the same straight lugs, and the crown is flanked by the two pushers.
Compare the original Speedmaster with the new CK2998, and you quickly see how contemporary Omega's interpretation of this icon's design is.
Rooted in motor racing
Omega originally designed a chronometer for precisely timing car races, hence the name given to the very first pieces in 1957. Using the tachymeter scale on the bezel, the speed achieved could easily be calculated from the distance covered and the time measured. Since 1968, the movement has ticked at 21,600 vibrations per hour. The CK2998 ticks at the same rate.
The CK2998 Limited Edition
What immediately stands out on the Moonwatch CK2998 Limited Edition are the crisp shades of blue used on the three subdials, the minute track, and the bezel. The tachymeter scale on the bezel is not only made of polished blue ceramic but also coated with Super-LumiNova, ensuring it remains easy to read in poor light and in the dark.
The hands feature this coating as well. The case of the CK2998 itself is made of brushed and polished stainless steel. On the silver dial, the subdial hands as well as the minute and hour hands are alpha-shaped.
The "lollipop" seconds hand recalls the first Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch. The watch is held on the wrist by a blue leather strap; subtly contrasting beige stitching and a polished buckle complete this coveted collector's piece, the CK2998 Limited Edition. Only 2998 of these chronographs will be made, each individually numbered. The Limited Edition number is engraved on the caseback, together with the Omega logo, the "Speedmaster" name, and the seahorse.
Speedmaster: a case of moon fever
When the first CK2998 went on sale in 1959, it quickly became a coveted icon. It holds that status to this day: its alpha hands, dark bezel, and symmetrical case never fail to thrill Omega fans. The design has been carefully modernized while the watch retains the qualities collectors prize so highly.
Before NASA put together the astronauts' equipment, it tested several timepieces to find out which watch met the demands of spaceflight. Conditions in space differ from those on Earth: the watch must withstand strong magnetic fields and extreme temperature fluctuations, and be equally resistant to severe shocks and the effects of weightlessness. Only the Speedmaster met NASA's stringent requirements. During testing, the watches were subjected to low and high pressure and vibration, and they also had to run accurately at temperatures between -18 and +93 degrees Celsius. For passing every test, the Speedmaster was awarded NASA's designation "flight-qualified by NASA for all manned space missions".
When the service module of the Apollo 13 spacecraft was damaged by an oxygen tank explosion in March 1970, the astronauts made it back to Earth only because they were able to perform a course correction. For this, they relied on the precision of their chronometer, as the navigation computers and timers had been shut down. The window for firing the engines was just 14 seconds. Had the timing been off, the spacecraft would have missed Earth and vanished into the depths of space. For the success of this maneuver, the Omega Speedmaster of the day received the Silver Snoopy Award, the highest honor bestowed by NASA.
The 2023 Moonwatch update
Since 2023, the Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Moonphase Chronograph 44.25 mm has served as the color-matched successor to the CK2998 Limited Edition. The ceramic watch bears the nickname "Blue Side of the Moon", consistently continuing the series. Caliber 9904, with a 60-hour power reserve and a moon phase as its standout complication, has passed METAS's Master Chronometer certification process, making it one of the most precise chronograph calibers of all.
