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On August 2nd, 1971, Apollo 15’s mission commander, the seventh man to walk on the moon and the first to drive the Lunar Rover, made history while wearing a Bulova chronograph wristwatch. Crafted specifically for astronomical conditions, the Lunar Pilot watch was used in space to track time, ensuring no one ran out of oxygen, water or battery power in the portable life support-system backpack. It was also used to back up the on-board timers for the critical reentry into the Earth’s atmosphere. The timepiece could—and did—perform flawlessly, withstanding pressures of changing atmospheric conditions, fluctuating temperatures and gravitational shifts. Bulova celebrated the 50th anniversary of this mission in 2021 bringing renewed interest and excitement to the Lunar Pilot collection.
“There is no denying the success of the Lunar Pilot and the genuine story behind such an incredible timepiece,” says Jeffrey Cohen, President of Citizen Watch America. “To be able to integrate space materials into the watch brings a fresh perspective to this original design.”
Bulova now brings inspiration from the elements of space in their new Limited Edition Lunar Pilot timepiece, specifically larger meteoroids during meteor showers that fall to Earth and strike the ground as meteorites. Heated by combination of gravitational compression, the impact energy created by collisions, and the decay of isotopes, the meteorite goes through an extremely slow-cooling process. Over the course of millions of years in space a unique crystalline pattern called “Widmanstätten” is created as structures are formed by chemical interactions with the parent asteroid. The unique patterns cannot be recreated in laboratory, therefore no two watch dials will be alike.
