- A new edition of this bestseller, updated and expanded to include
watches from 2020One small step for a man, a giant leap for mankind and
an extraordinary destiny for the watch that accompanied Man's first
steps on the Moon, thereby becoming the greatest icon in watchmaking
history: the Omega Speedmaster "Moonwatch". Introduced to the public by
Omega in 1957, the Speedmaster was designed for mainly sporting
purposes, such as in motor racing. However, its fate took a completely
different turn in the early 1960s. Astronauts going to space, some of
whom wore a Speedmaster for private use, wanted to be officially
equipped with a reliable, accurate and resistant watch. For this reason,
NASA undertook a series of rigorous tests in extreme conditions in 1964
to select the best chronograph to accompany them on their space
missions. The Omega Speedmaster won these tests and was officially
certified ("Flight Qualified for All Manned Space Missions") by NASA on
March 1, 1965 for the Gemini project. It was in July 1969 that it truly
made history, serving the astronauts of the Apollo 11 mission (Neil
Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins) for man's first steps on the
Moon. This book retraces an extraordinary epic and the evolution of a
unique and timeless watch which, from its beginnings in 1957 through to
the current models, has remained endlessly fascinating. Updated and
expanded to include watches from 2020.
