Would a Rolex work in space?

[OLJR]

If I happened to take my GMTII into space would it still work? And if so, would there be any impact of the lower gravity and lack of an atmosphere on accuracy or automatic winding?

[snowbird]

Don't know for sure, but isn't that one reason why NASA picked the manual wind Omega Speedmaster for space (concerns if an automatic would work)?

[Time2time]

Im' going there this weekend. Will let you know when I get back.

[MY-WATCH]

Originally Posted by Time2time

Im' going there this weekend. Will let you know when I get back.

[splenahan]

Originally Posted by snowbird

Don't know for sure, but isn't that one reason why NASA picked the manual wind Omega Speedmaster for space (concerns if an automatic would work)?

NASA used the Speedmaster as they needed a chronograph feature, as well as a timekeeping feature. Automatic Chronographs did not come out until NASA had already purchased and standardized the Omega. An Automatic would work, the question is weather the self winding feature would be efficient in space.

[bYAZZ]

Man on the moon watch!

[capote]

Originally Posted by OLJR

If I happened to take my GMTII into space would it still work? And if so, would there be any impact of the lower gravity and lack of an atmosphere on accuracy or automatic winding?

Well the lack of atmosphere would impair breathing ability no doubt

[way out west]

yes indeed, it would still impress the aliens there with your good taste !

[Tinito16]

Hi, OLJR

I'm not an expert in outer space or the effects of micro gravity, but I am studying to be an engineer, so FWIW:

I think the timekeeping mechanism would probably work just fine, however, the winding mechanism (aka the rotor) will probably be less efficient, because on Earth as you move your wrist the rotor will tend to move because of it's own inertia as well as gravity. In outer space there is almost no gravity, so you don't have that to help anymore; you would only have inertia to work with.

A real problem would be cracking of the glass. If you went up there without unscrewing the crown, there is going to be air trapped within the watch. I have read that during some EVA's (Extravehicular Activities or just spacewalks) the crystals of the Omega Speedmasters that were used at the time actually popped. I can imagine you can mitigate the problem by slowly depressurizing the watch (by opening the crown perhaps), but I'm not sure how that would affect the mechanism (probably not much but it might). In any case, assuming the crystal doesn't fail, the watch should still keep fairly good time.

One other note: I've read that a lot of Rolex users regulate their watches by leaving them in different positions at night. I don't think this would work in space...

PS. This was my first post - been a lurker for a while, absolutely love these watches. Hopefully once I graduate I'll be able to buy my first piece - right now, I'm really liking the 116613 LB.

Cheers!

[mjrennie]

Originally Posted by Tinito16

Hi, OLJR

I'm not an expert in outer space or the effects of micro gravity, but I am studying to be an engineer, so FWIW:

I think the timekeeping mechanism would probably work just fine, however, the winding mechanism (aka the rotor) will probably be less efficient, because on Earth as you move your wrist the rotor will tend to move because of it's own inertia as well as gravity. In outer space there is almost no gravity, so you don't have that to help anymore; you would only have inertia to work with.

A real problem would be cracking of the glass. If you went up there without unscrewing the crown, there is going to be air trapped within the watch. I have read that during some EVA's (Extravehicular Activities or just spacewalks) the crystals of the Omega Speedmasters that were used at the time actually popped. I can imagine you can mitigate the problem by slowly depressurizing the watch (by opening the crown perhaps), but I'm not sure how that would affect the mechanism (probably not much but it might). In any case, assuming the crystal doesn't fail, the watch should still keep fairly good time.

One other note: I've read that a lot of Rolex users regulate their watches by leaving them in different positions at night. I don't think this would work in space...

PS. This was my first post - been a lurker for a while, absolutely love these watches. Hopefully once I graduate I'll be able to buy my first piece - right now, I'm really liking the 116613 LB.

Cheers!

Excellent taste.

[Tinito16]

Originally Posted by mjrennie

Excellent taste.

Thank you, I see you have that particular taste as well

[rad87gn]

Originally Posted by Tinito16

Hi, OLJR

I think the timekeeping mechanism would probably work just fine, however, the winding mechanism (aka the rotor) will probably be less efficient, because on Earth as you move your wrist the rotor will tend to move because of it's own inertia as well as gravity. In outer space there is almost no gravity, so you don't have that to help anymore; you would only have inertia to work with.

I agree.

[moviefreak]

Originally Posted by Tinito16

Hi, OLJR

I think the timekeeping mechanism would probably work just fine, however, the winding mechanism (aka the rotor) will probably be less efficient, because on Earth as you move your wrist the rotor will tend to move because of it's own inertia as well as gravity. In outer space there is almost no gravity, so you don't have that to help anymore; you would only have inertia to work with.

BUT... wouldn't there be also less resistance to the movement of the other parts involved in the mechanism, so it could be that in the end, instead of decreasing efficiency, it stays the same or even better...

Ok.. has any of our members tried this in space.. I think we need the astronauts to come out clean and help us out here..

[Tinito16]

Originally Posted by moviefreak

BUT... wouldn't there be also less resistance to the movement of the other parts involved in the mechanism, so it could be that in the end, instead of decreasing efficiency, it stays the same or even better...

Ok.. has any of our members tried this in space.. I think we need the astronauts to come out clean and help us out here..

Well, I actually thought of that as well, and it might well be the case; it really depends on how much friction the movement generates against the rotor. Or put another way, how easy/hard is it for the rotor to move? The rotor has a lot of inertia relative to the movement. So, if you shake/move your wrist alot, it will most definitely rotate and wind the movement for longer than it will on Earth (no gravity to stop it). However, easy movements won't have as big of an effect, because you no longer have gravity to "pull" the rotor back. So basically, my thinking is if you spin the rotor fast, it will keep on going for longer than on Earth, but if you don't move around violently enough, it's going to have a harder time winding the watch.

[FlyingMoose]

Originally Posted by moviefreak

BUT... wouldn't there be also less resistance to the movement of the other parts involved in the mechanism, so it could be that in the end, instead of decreasing efficiency, it stays the same or even better...

The escapement might be more efficient (and have a greater amplitude), but the spring wouldn't be any easier to wind.

[Grumpy Badger]

Welcome Tinito!
Helium escape valve to save the crystal?

[Tinito16]

Originally Posted by Grumpy Badger

Welcome Tinito!
Helium escape valve to save the crystal?

Well, I just read about how that works:Wikipedia

Apparently it will let only certain molecules through, which will undoubtedly help, but I'm not sure it will work on its own. However, given that the DSSD is built like a tank, it can probably take the vacuum like a champ. Then again, most of these watches are designed to take pressure from the outside, not the inside, so a proper mechanical space-watch will have to be a new design.

Right now, with all the advances in technology and computers, it is more cost effective to just have a digital watch (which, being mostly solid state electronics, doesn't have many of the problems inherent in mechanical technology). However, radiation and heat will mess with electronics, so it will probably be a good idea to have a mechanical backup for a while still.

[Dan Pierce]

Yes. And it's been proved w/ real world experience.
dP

[Tinito16]

I think something weird happened to a post I made re: Mark's helium escape valve question. My other posts show up but that one gave me a message saying the mods would look at it before it was posted. In any case:

Thanks for the welcome! And the gist of what I said in the post is that yes, it might work, but because the valve only lets through certain small molecules, only up to a certain point.

[Dan2010]

I have been called a space cadet before but I didn't have my watch on at the time so I can't answer the question.

[daunwaun]

Very interesting question...

[VetteBandit]

Should work issue free - as someone pointed out, you would need to manually wind it rather than rely on the rotor. Additionally, there could potentially be some pressure differential issues.

[Danand]

Numerous rolex watches have gone up in space, just not as the official watch. I would think that up there it would be prudent to assume the automatic winding won't be enough so manually winding it regularly would be wise. I don't think the lack of gravity should have any significant affect on the mechanism otherwise, seeing as how our watches change position a lot while wearing.

[paddy_crow]

First off, a spacecraft is pressurized. People wouldn't be able to live in one if it wasn't. So any worries about the crystal cracking or popping off are silly. If you wear the watch on the outside of a pressurized suit while spacewalking, that's another discussion. I'd love to see the diver's expansion on that bracelet! Even then, the maximum difference across the crystal would be one atmosphere.

As for the lack of gravity affecting the winding mechanism, I would expect this to be pretty negligible. The vast majority of the rotation is due to the inertia of the eccentric weight, which isn't affected by gravity.

[BH13GMT]

Great first post Tinito
I dont have much to add, however it has been photographed on serveral occaisions that Astronauts have worn their Airforce Issue GMT's during space flight.
Back to the OP, I think your GMT would be fine if you avoid any EVA, if you insist stepping outside, you will have switch to a SD or SDDS with their HEV.

[buddy13]

In lack of gravity, the movements might not be quick enough (generate enough inertial force) to keep the mainspring wound...

Seiko thought that the Springdrive spacewalk would need to be hand wound in space, however this was not the case. It proved to work perpetually ...

[The GMT Master]

If I remember correctly, Jake's Blog has a lot of pictures of Apollo astronauts wearing GMTs on the spacecraft. As for outside the spacecraft, it was Speedmasters only! The extreme tests that NASA put the Speedmaster through were to test every aspect of a watch, ensuring it would remain reliable and accurate from launch, the trip to the Moon, being on the surface of the Moon, and re-entry. As it is well known, the candidate from Rolex (the Daytona) failed these tests, the extreme temperature test, if I recall. Outside the confines of a pressurised spacecraft, space is an almost unfathomably hostile environment, and it takes something special to survive out there.

On the spacecraft, however, any watch would work without a problem in terms of timekeeping. I would think that smashing a sapphire crystal could cause a lot of problems, though!

[dannyp]

Originally Posted by The GMT Master

If I remember correctly, Jake's Blog has a lot of pictures of Apollo astronauts wearing GMTs on the spacecraft. As for outside the spacecraft, it was Speedmasters only! The extreme tests that NASA put the Speedmaster through were to test every aspect of a watch, ensuring it would remain reliable and accurate from launch, the trip to the Moon, being on the surface of the Moon, and re-entry. As it is well known, the candidate from Rolex (the Daytona) failed these tests, the extreme temperature test, if I recall. Outside the confines of a pressurised spacecraft, space is an almost unfathomably hostile environment, and it takes something special to survive out there.

On the spacecraft, however, any watch would work without a problem in terms of timekeeping. I would think that smashing a sapphire crystal could cause a lot of problems, though!

However, the Daytona failing on temperature test only doesn't necessarily tell us anything about this particular question because, if memory serves me, the Daytona of that day was a manual-wind, acrylic crystal?

Also, test failures aside, I doubt any of the astronauts would have worn their personal watch atop their space suits: chances are they had bracelets or leather on their own while every photo I've seen of the Omega "Moon Watch" has an extra long nylon strap for use either with or without a space suit.

[gbany]

Originally Posted by dannyp

However, the Daytona failing on temperature test only doesn't necessarily tell us anything about this particular question because, if memory serves me, the Daytona of that day was a manual-wind, acrylic crystal?

That is correct. I recall reading an article about it. The problem with Rolex was about the hands. The metal would bend/warp during the temperature test.

[bayerische]

No problem. I think most watches would do just fine.