Omega Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch

A racing chronograph that went to space

The Speedmaster was born in 1957 as a sport and racing chronograph. Its name came from its tachymeter bezel, following the pattern of Omega's Seamaster and Railmaster, and the first model, reference CK 2915, set the template every Moonwatch still follows: three subdials, high-contrast markers and a domed Plexiglas crystal Omega called Hesalite.

It reached space before NASA chose it. Astronaut Wally Schirra wore his own CK 2998 on Mercury-Atlas 8 on October 3, 1962. NASA then put chronographs from Rolex, Longines-Wittnauer and Omega through a gauntlet of heat, cold, vacuum, pure oxygen, shock, acceleration, vibration and noise. In March 1965 the Speedmaster was the one selected, having stayed largely within five seconds a day.

Later that month Gus Grissom and John Young wore the first officially qualified Speedmasters on Gemini 3. In June 1965 Ed White wore one strapped over his suit on the first American spacewalk. The photographs of that spacewalk ran in Omega's advertising for the next two years and welded the Speedmaster's name to space travel.

The Moon, and the watches that went with it

On July 20, 1969, Apollo 11 landed on the Moon. Neil Armstrong left his Speedmaster 105.012 inside the lunar module as a backup because the module's electronic timer had malfunctioned, so Buzz Aldrin's became the first watch worn on the Moon. Aldrin later wrote that few things were less necessary on the Moon than knowing the time in Houston, "nonetheless, being a watch guy," he strapped it on over his suit. His watch was later lost in shipping when he sent it to the Smithsonian.

In 1970, after an oxygen tank ruptured on Apollo 13, Jack Swigert's Speedmaster timed a critical 14-second engine burn that helped bring the crew home. The Apollo 13 astronauts gave Omega the Snoopy Award in recognition.

The Speedmaster was not the only watch on the lunar surface. On Apollo 15 in 1971, Dave Scott's Speedmaster lost its crystal during the second moonwalk, and for the third he wore a Bulova chronograph he had agreed to evaluate. NASA re-evaluated the Speedmaster in 1972 and qualified it again for the Space Shuttle program in 1978, and it remains the only watch NASA has qualified for spacewalks.

The watches that actually went to the Moon were the 105.012 and 145.012, powered by the caliber 321. The 310.30.42.50.01.001 is their direct descendant, not one of them.

From 321 to 861 to 3861

In 1968 Omega replaced the column-wheel caliber 321 with the caliber 861, also designed by Albert Piguet. It swapped the column wheel for a cam and raised the beat rate from 18,000 to 21,600 vibrations an hour. Variants of that movement, including the rhodium-plated caliber 1861, powered the standard Moonwatch for more than half a century, with the same Hesalite crystal, solid caseback and layout. Tritium lume gave way to non-radioactive pigment at the end of the 1990s, and from 2014 the standard model was reference 311.30.42.30.01.005.

The successor movement, caliber 3861, first appeared in 2019 in an all-gold Speedmaster marking the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, and then in the 2020 Silver Snoopy Award edition. It keeps the hand-wound chronograph architecture and the 21,600 vph beat of the 1861, but adds the Co-Axial escapement, a silicon hairspring and non-ferrous parts that resist magnetic fields up to 15,000 gauss.

In early January 2021 Omega brought it to the everyday Moonwatch. One account dates the debut to January 8; trade coverage appeared a day or two before. Omega launched eight versions at once, from this steel Hesalite model up to bracelet versions in its proprietary Sedna and Canopus gold.

What changed, and how to spot it

Nearly everything changed while the silhouette stayed put. The dial is now stepped, a nod to 1960s Speedmasters; the bezel's dot sits over the 90 rather than beside it; the chronograph seconds hand gains a drop-shaped counterweight; and the seconds track is divided into thirds of a second to match the 3 Hz movement. The case, modeled on the 105.012, is thinner than before: 13.58 mm against 14.3 mm for the 1861 Hesalite model.

The caseback carries an embossed seahorse medallion and now reads "Flight-Qualified By NASA In 1965 For All Manned Space Missions," adding the year. The Omega logo moved to the back of a lug, and another lug now names the case metal. The Hesalite crystal still hides a tiny Omega logo etched at its center.

The bracelet is new: five screwed links per row, fully brushed on this reference, tapering from 20 mm at the lugs to 15 mm at the clasp. Collectors call it the "Nixon" bracelet after the gold Speedmaster offered to President Nixon in 1969. Early examples had no micro-adjustment; about a year after launch Omega began fitting a clasp with one.

Telling the Hesalite and sapphire versions apart is simple. The 310.30.42.50.01.001 has a painted logo, a solid back and an all-brushed bracelet. Its sapphire sibling, 310.30.42.50.01.002, has an applied metal logo, a display back showing the 3861 and polished center links. Subdial finishing varies within the Hesalite reference itself: Omega has used more than one dial supplier, and some dials show faint concentric circles in the subdials while others do not. Both are correct.

The caliber 3861

The 3861 is hand-wound, beats at 21,600 vibrations an hour and holds a 50-hour power reserve. It drives small seconds, a 30-minute counter, a 12-hour counter and the central chronograph hand. Because it is a Master Chronometer, its timing and functional testing is overseen by METAS, Switzerland's national measurement agency.

The certification targets 0 to +5 seconds a day, against -1 to +10 for the 1861 it replaced. One owner who measured his after five years recorded +4 seconds a day dial up and +2 crown down. The certification also brought a guaranteed and tested 50-meter water resistance; earlier Moonwatches carried ratings but were not recommended for swimming.

Price and place

The new Moonwatch arrived about 25 percent more expensive than the model it replaced: $6,300 in the US for this steel Hesalite version on a bracelet, and in Europe a jump from just under €5,000 to €6,100. The sapphire bracelet version listed at $7,150, and the Canopus gold bracelet model at $45,300.

Prices kept rising. By March 2026 the European retail price was €7,700, and in October 2026 the maker's US site listed this reference at $7,800. At the same time, at least one dealer was offering a new, 2026-dated example for $6,750.

Omega has told one longtime reviewer that the sapphire version is now outselling the Hesalite, the first time that has happened with the Moonwatch. The Hesalite model remains the one closest to what flew: a plastic crystal, a solid back and a hand-wound chronograph.

The numbers

Reference

310.30.42.50.01.001 (Hesalite, steel bracelet); strap version 310.32.42.50.01.001

Caliber

Omega 3861, hand-wound, Co-Axial escapement, silicon hairspring, 21,600 vph (3 Hz), 50-hour power reserve

Certification

METAS Master Chronometer: 0 to +5 seconds a day, resistant to 15,000 gauss

Case

42 mm stainless steel, 13.58 mm thick, 20 mm lug width, Hesalite crystal, solid caseback

Water resistance

50 m (5 bar)

Bracelet

Five-link steel, tapering 20 mm to 15 mm

Production years

2021 to present

Production numbers

Not published; not a limited edition

Timeline

1. 1957

   Omega launches the Speedmaster, reference CK 2915, as a sport and racing chronograph.

2. Oct 3, 1962

   Wally Schirra wears his personal Speedmaster CK 2998 on Mercury-Atlas 8.

3. Mar 1965

   NASA selects the Speedmaster after its qualification tests.

4. Jun 3, 1965

   Ed White wears a Speedmaster on the first American spacewalk, during Gemini IV.

5. 1968

   The caliber 861 replaces the caliber 321 in the Speedmaster Professional.

6. Jul 20, 1969

   Apollo 11 lands; Buzz Aldrin's Speedmaster becomes the first watch worn on the Moon.

7. 1970

   Jack Swigert's Speedmaster times a 14-second burn on Apollo 13; Omega later receives the Snoopy Award.

8. 1978

   The Speedmaster is qualified for use in the Space Shuttle program, after a 1972 re-evaluation.

9. 2014

   Reference 311.30.42.30.01.005 becomes the standard caliber 1861 Moonwatch.

10. 2019

    Caliber 3861 debuts in an all-gold Speedmaster for the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11.

11. 2020

    The Silver Snoopy Award 50th anniversary edition also uses the caliber 3861.

12. Jan 2021

    Omega introduces the 3861 Moonwatch in eight versions; the Hesalite steel bracelet model is ref. 310.30.42.50.01.001 at $6,300.

13. 2022

    About a year after launch, Omega begins fitting the bracelet with a micro-adjustable clasp.

14. Mar 2026

    European retail for the reference reaches €7,700.

15. Oct 2026

    Omega's US site lists the 310.30.42.50.01.001 at $7,800.

The world in 2021

• Feb 18, 2021

  NASA's Perseverance rover lands in Jezero crater on Mars.

• Apr 3, 2021

  The Ingenuity helicopter is deployed from Perseverance on the Martian surface.

• Jul 20, 2021

  On the 52nd anniversary of Apollo 11, Blue Origin flies its first crew, including Jeff Bezos and Mercury 13 member Wally Funk.

• Sep 16, 2021

  Inspiration4, a privately funded SpaceX flight on behalf of Jared Isaacman, launches into orbit.

• Dec 25, 2021

  The James Webb Space Telescope launches.

Price record

This is an asking price, not a sale. It is what a seller wanted on the date shown. Asking prices often sit above what buyers pay, but an ask is not a ceiling: a sale can land on either side of it. It is not a value.

By reference price, Omega Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch is number 93 of 100 in the watches entries of the FLOAT 100. 54 of those 100 rest on a realized sale; the rest carry an asking price or a guide value, and each page says which. Rank within the FLOAT 100 itself (49 here) is editorial: how much an object defines its field, not price alone.

Did you know

• The Hesalite crystal has a tiny Omega logo etched into its center, visible only at the right angle.
• The new caseback adds two words to the old text: it now says the watch was flight-qualified by NASA "in 1965."
• Despite a more complex movement, the 2021 Moonwatch is thinner than the model it replaced.
• Neil Armstrong left his Speedmaster inside the lunar module, so Buzz Aldrin's became the first watch worn on the Moon.
• Buzz Aldrin's Moon-landing Speedmaster was lost in the mail on its way to the Smithsonian.
• On Apollo 15, a Bulova chronograph was worn on the lunar surface after Dave Scott's Speedmaster lost its crystal.
• Omega says the sapphire Moonwatch now outsells the Hesalite model, a first for the line.