Samantha Cristoforetti she is the first Italian to command the International Space Station, as well as the first Italian woman in the crews ofEuropean Space Agency. In all his missions, on his wrist there is theOmega Speedmaster X33: a truly special watch. Let's find out more about this chronograph which is so unusual and far from the traditional "Speedy" whose name it bears.
Omega Speedmaster X-33: the origins
At the end of the 1990s, NASA and ROSCOSMOS asked Omega to produce a watch for use in long-duration space missions. The traditional Speedmaster is fine for extravehicular activities in a vacuum, thanks to its robustness and ease of reading, but it is believed that new digital technology could be useful inside space capsules. Here, a watch capable of storing information and transmitting it to users during missions is required.
Omega Speedmaster X-33: how it's made
THEOmega Speedmaster X-33 It comes from long years of studies and development by Omega. The material in which this watch is made is titanium, light and resistant. The glass is scratch-resistant sapphire. It was chosen to insert a quartz module, for reasons of precision, robustness, no need for manual loading and, naturally, to take advantage of all the innovations that digital offers.
One of the requirements is a long period mission timer. Omega does not disappoint and comes with a functionality that allows you to measure intervals of up to 999 days of stay in space. Even the sound alarms are carefully developed: each function corresponds to a different tone and the volume is high enough to be audible even when wearing a helmet.
Omega Speedmaster X-33 vs traditional Speedmaster
At first glance you might think that with this model Omega wanted to replace it Speedmaster with a quartz watch. After all, there are the twisted lyre lugs, the roller bracelet, the NASA space flight certification, the seahorse on the caseback and, of course, the “Speedmaster” script written in cursive on the dial… Actually, that's what Omega wanted do with it Speedmaster X-33 Skywalker was to develop a specific watch for a specific task. Starting from some characteristics that refer to the traditional Speedy and that recall the history of Omega, yes. But without wanting to touch the conventional Speedmaster in any way, or its historical legacy: if anything, alongside it. The Omega X-33 is a totally different watch from a traditional Speedmaster, but it borrows some of its features to pay homage to it.
Even in duties aboard the International Space Station, I Speedmaster X-33 and Traditional Speedmaster differ: the modern digital watch is designed for use inside the capsule, as a sort of astronaut's wrist computer. But when there is an extravehicular activity (EVA) to be carried out in the cosmic vacuum, theOmega Speedmaster Moonwatch it continues to be worn over the suit, exposed to scorching heat, sidereal cold, UV radiation and zero pressure. Performing, today as decades ago, its function as a mechanical watch in the space age impeccably: there is no reason to think that the traditional Speedmaster will not have a long life in the exploration of the final frontier.
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