Monde et Montres...

Continuation of Watches in Space - 6 : Who except Omega?

French Version: Les montres dans l'espace - 7 : Suite... et fin?

What is the state of the Spatial Adventure?

The president of the United States, George W Bush evoked a new program to return on the Moon, but his successor Barak Obama stopped the project for budget reasons.

The United States stopped also their Shuttle program after 2 catastrophs causing the loss of two shuttles with their crews. They now depend on the russian to send astronauts to the Internation Space Station (ISS).

ISS itself is considered as ageing, and the russian program is based on rockets already rather old.

The Spatial Exploration Program is consequently close to total immobility, actually.

Which future?

The projects are numerous: refresh ISS, go back to the moon to establish a permanent life-base, use this base or the ISS as a launching ramp for an expedition to Mars...

With the electronic progress, it is more than probable that to monitor the passing time, the next space adventurers will carry probably a quartz watch: smaller, more accurate, with much more functions...

But we can also  imagine that great watch brands will push hard to propose their product: Omega X33, Tissot T Touch, ... are probably products that will insire next space matches.

And if we were taking the time to dream? Taking into account all the risk du to Space (Solar winds generating strong EMC perturbations, ...), long time missions not compliant with the duration of a battery, ... could it be possible that a watch 100% mechanical could be part of the adventure? We can imagine also that the big army of brands marketing may persuade to associate them to nex programs, with a big subvention in return, or more simply that one of next explorators will carry his personnal mechanica watch (may a little "pushed" by any brand?).

I think that if there is a next program allowing those adventures, it will have to be a world wide program, and wont be done by a country alone. The actual politic context is not very favorable for the moment, let's hope it will get better soon.

Let's hope that for the stability and the peace in the world. Set's hope that for the beauty of the spatial adventure, and ... let's hope that for the beauty of the watch adventure!

Time wil tell...

Back to introduction: Watches in Space - 1 : Introduction.