Omega watches have long been associated with exploration, innovation and human achievement—from space missions to lunar landings, precision timekeeping for Olympic events to keeping James Bond company. The Omega Speedmaster Professional Chronograph, worn by Buzz Aldrin on the July 20th, 1969 Apollo 11 mission, was the first watch on the moon. In 2001, the first ‘space tourist’ visited the International Space Station wearing The OMEGA Speedmaster X-33 chronograph, and the Omega commitment to the pioneering of new technology for human exploration and innovation continues to this day.
Earlier this year, the Solar Impulse prototype plane HB-SIA—an entirely solar-powered aircraft weighing only 1700kgs and boasting an impressive 63 metre wingspan—successfully completed a two-hour maiden voyage. Omega is one of Solar Impulse’s Main Partners, supplying capital to the project and providing technological support including the performance simulation and testing system, and the so-called Omega Instrument, an easy to read instrument that provides the pilot with essential information for landing.
The Solar Impulse project aims to circumnavigate the globe in a plane powered only by solar energy, an important step in the quest to break free from a dependence on non-renewable energy sources. With Omega watches the first on the moon, and on a pioneering trip that opens space up to tourism—in a sense—it makes sense that they’ve now set their sights on the sun.