Swatch is preparing to launch a range of new watches inspired in part by historical NASA garments.
Set to go on sale on June 3, the Swish watchmaker’s Space Collection is made up of five watches each featuring the iconic NASA “Worm” logo.
The first three watches in the range are 47mm quartz watches that feature bioceramic cases and are inspired by iconic NASA flight and spacesuits.
The Big Bold Chrono Extravehicular is inspired by the spacesuits astronauts use to perform spacewalks aboard the International Space Station. The bright orange Big Bold Chrono Launch is very obviously reminiscent of the iconic “Pumpkin Suit” worn by NASA space shuttle crews. Finally, the Big Bold Jumpsuit takes inspiration from the blue flight suits worn by NASA astronauts during training and press events.
The two additional watches in the Swatch Space Collection are more reminiscent of the Swish watchmaker’s traditional collections. The Space Race watch offers a simple white colourway with black accents while the Take Me To The Moon is the smallest of the five and features a transparent case.
Once launched on Thursday, the Big Bold Jumpsuit watch is expected to retail for $125, the Big Bold Chrono Extravehicular for $160, and the Big Bold Chrono Launch for $165. The smaller Space Race and Take Me To The Moon watches will retail for $95 and $85 respectively.
Although Swatch doesn’t have the same pedigree in space as the likes of Omega, one of the watchmaker’s endlessly reliable timepieces hitched a ride into orbit on the wrist of Swiss astronaut Claude Nicollier aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia for STS-75 in 1996.
In addition to Nicollier, Dutch astronaut Wubbo Ockels is believed to have worn a Swatch watch aboard STS 61-A in 1985, and Spanish astronaut Pedro Duque wore two for his kids aboard the Soyuz TMA-3 mission in 2003.
