Photo: Omega
You know how many of the digital watches, clocks, and calendars we use today are capable of telling time and weather in several locations at once? Those are very useful features, especially for travellers, but they all have one major limitation: they can only do that for locations here on Earth. So what if, for instance, you’d like to know what time it is over on Mars, for whatever reason?
That’s when the Omega Marstimer kicks into gear. Described as “the first watch to display the time on Earth and Mars,” this was presented earlier this week at the European Space Agency’s (ESA) ESTEC facility in The Netherlands, where it was tested before cleared for production.
The watch is part of Omega’s Speedmaster range, which from time to time does feature space-related or themed watches. After all, it was Omega Speedmasters that were worn on the wrists of Apollo astronauts, even when they reached the Moon.
Officially called X-33 Marstimer, the watch comes with a grade 2 titanium case, and features a 45 mm chronograph that keeps track of time on both planets. To help the user tell the two time zones apart, the watch features the Red Planet’s symbol when in Mars mode. The Martian time displayed is the one at planet's prime meridian.
Aside from keeping track of time, the gizmo also offers access to a solar compass that can help with finding the true North on both Earth and Mars, and alarms and a perpetual calendar are also featured on the watch.
As for design, the Marstimer shows a reproduction of a canyon called Hebes Chasma on the inner lining of the watch roll, while the caseback is engraved with letters spelling “ESA tested and qualified.”
The Omega X-33 Marstimer is already listed on the company’s website, but is not available in all countries. For the American Mars-nuts customers, the watch sells for $6,400.
The watch is part of Omega’s Speedmaster range, which from time to time does feature space-related or themed watches. After all, it was Omega Speedmasters that were worn on the wrists of Apollo astronauts, even when they reached the Moon.
Officially called X-33 Marstimer, the watch comes with a grade 2 titanium case, and features a 45 mm chronograph that keeps track of time on both planets. To help the user tell the two time zones apart, the watch features the Red Planet’s symbol when in Mars mode. The Martian time displayed is the one at planet's prime meridian.
Aside from keeping track of time, the gizmo also offers access to a solar compass that can help with finding the true North on both Earth and Mars, and alarms and a perpetual calendar are also featured on the watch.
As for design, the Marstimer shows a reproduction of a canyon called Hebes Chasma on the inner lining of the watch roll, while the caseback is engraved with letters spelling “ESA tested and qualified.”
The Omega X-33 Marstimer is already listed on the company’s website, but is not available in all countries. For the American Mars-nuts customers, the watch sells for $6,400.
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