OMEGA MOONWATCH THE SPEEDMASTER 321 MOONWATCH IS NOW AVAILABLE IN STEEL
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Omega has introduced a long-awaited steel version of its Speedmaster 321 Moonwatch, released last year in platinum. The watch, in all three versions, reintroduces the vintage Omega caliber 321, a column-wheel-controlled, lateral-clutch chronograph. It was the first movement ever used in the Speedmaster, when it was launched in 1957, specifically in the Speedmaster ST 105.003, the model tested and qualified by NASA and worn by astronaut Ed White during the first American spacewalk in 1965. The caliber 321 also powered the Speedmaster ST 105.012, the first watch worn on the moon. The movement is being made according to the same specifications as the original caliber, except that some components are now made of Sedna gold, Omega’s proprietary pink gold alloy. The Speedmaster 321 Moon Watch, including both platinum and steel versions, is the first new Speedmaster Moonwatch to house the caliber 321.
The design is also faithful to the original Speedmaster ST 105.003, with a bezel ring in polished black ceramic and a tachometer scale in white enamel, as well as the straight lugs and the “dot- over-90” bezel, a detail on the tachometer scale that is a hallmark of pre-1970 Speedmasters. On subsequent models, the dot was positioned next to the 90 rather than above it on the scale. It also has the familiar Moonwatch hands, small seconds subdial, 30-minute and 12-hour totalizators, and a central chronograph hand. Modern elements include zirconium oxide on the bezel, as well as sapphire for front and back crystals. The original had a closed caseback. The Speedmaster 321 carries an authenticity that often isn’t part of the package when it comes to many recent neo-vintage models. It is remarkable, not just for its back story as the first watch on the moon, but also for its use of an original caliber, made well
enough in the 1950s to be considered worthy of today’s higher standards — including standards set by Omega.
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