Space travel will remain a dream for most of us, but the dream came true for the German geophysicist Alexander Gerst. This European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut experienced his first tour on the International Space Station (ISS) in 2014. He conducted experiments for almost half a year and photographed the earth in new and fascinating ways. Photos show Gerst floating through the ISS wearing the Omega Speedmaster Skywalker X-33. This watch follows in the footsteps of the multifunctional Speedmaster X-33 and the Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch, which was part of every manned moon landing.
The Skywalker was specially developed for astronauts. In addition to the analog time display using hands, the digital display shows three different time zones and has three alarms, a chronograph, countdown timer, date, mission-elapsed time (MET) and phase-elapsed time (PET). The 45-mm case is made of lightweight grade 2 titanium.
ESA has tested and certified the watch for use by its astronauts: the caseback bears the words “tested and qualified by ESA.” Although earthbound citizens still have to contend with gravity every day, we can strap on the Omega Skywalker X-33 with its sapphire crystal and unidirectional rotating bezel for $5,900.
