The evolution of Towson's "Space Chronograph" over 25 years.
2000: STS-99 Mission Chronometer
NASA Commander Gerhard Thiele wanted an American-made chronograph for his journey around Earth on the Endeavour spacecraft in 2000. The STS-99 Space Mission mapped the earth’s surface from the south of Greenland to the northern edge of the Antarctic lasting six months. It was the first space mission of the new millennium, making the TWC Mission Chronometer the first mechanical watch of the 2000’s worn in outer space and the last ever worn on a NASA solo-craft space mission.
The high-grade Caliber 7750 automatic movement made for this project was built and regulated in the TWC workshop by TWC Co-Founder George Thomas, to later obtain COSC certification in Switzerland. The construction and components followed standard ETA/Valjoux requirements.
Making, assembling, and servicing a triple-chronograph complication-set was deemed an impossibility for any American watchmaker at the time by most. Modifying one of these into a COSC-certified workhorse that loses less than two seconds a day was only the trade of Swiss watchmaker... right?
To make this commissioned project even more historically relevant, Commander Thiele requested an automatic chronograph for his mission. While space watches had certainly become “the thing” in the industry during the decades prior, it was believed that an automatic watch wouldn't work in space. "The zero gravity environment prevents the rotor from spinning freely..."
But this fallacy is why the commander sought after an American Brand for his request. Swiss brands had put dozens of chronographs in space already, but not a single one was automatic. Commander Thiele went to his friend, Hartwig Balke, who had once told him that "an automatic watch surely CAN work in space."
Hartwig and George completed eight certified chronometers for this project, two having served as faithful companions to the astronauts aboard the Endeavor aircraft in outer space for six months. And indeed...the rotors spun freely on the wrists of those astronauts. Proving that an automatic watch works in outer space.
After the first eight chronographs were made for the STS-99 space mission, two of which now lie on display at the NWAC museum, Hartwig and George celebrated their achievement with a limited series of 25 commemorative “replica” timepieces. The silver or black dials shared the exact same specifications as the original chronographs made for the astronauts. They featured the TWC initials and chronometer rating at the 6 o’clock sub-dial. Like the timepieces made initially, the 25 units that were made-to-order directly from TWC featured custom Benzinger rotors, skeletonized and filled with gold. COSC certification was included with these timepieces.
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2005: The TWC MISSION Chronograph
Due to the success of the first 25 chronographs, the founders paired up with a variety of local retailers to launch their first TWC collection. They would follow the same design language as the former limited collection, but sign the caseback and modify the guilloche-style as well as the case finishes to obtain a more premium look. This time, the TWC-initial dial in silver or black didn’t feature the chronometer rating. Due to the standardization reached in-house and the benefits of holding onto movements for longer for increased refinement, Towson Watch Company deemed the long COSC certification process unnecessary. The 100 total timepieces featured no reference model engraving on the back, but were engraved with the brand, region of manufacturer “USA” and serial number. They were sold at upscale retailers between 2005 and 2007.
2010: Mission M250
As the brand grew with the release of other collections featuring the TWC shield logo, the STS-99 Mission Chronograph became the basis for Towson’s signature chronograph collection going forward. Again, the same design language would be respected, but this time the dial would incorporate Towson’s shield. The M250 featured a 40mm steel case with a mirror-finish bezel and satin-finish sides. Roman numerals and painted scales were replaced with more formal and contemporary elements. The guilloche-style dial now contained rhodium hour-markers and spade-shaped hands. It was available in silver or black exclusively at our authorized retailers or the TWC website. Limited to 100 timepieces, each having an engraved exhibition caseback with the M250 reference number, serial number, ROF, brand signature and depth rating. Customized with silver or black tachymeter, rhodium-plated or rose gold-plated hands, and a leather strap.
2015: Mission Moon MM250
The Towson watchmakers had officially mastered the caliber 7750 chronograph and it was time to move to the next level and incorporate the 7751 into the Mission Collection. Once again, the same design language would follow in the first collection of 100 MM250 Mission Moon timepieces. Guilloche-style dial, plated spade-shaped hands and a high-polish 40mm case with free-standing chronograph pushers. Now featuring an outer date-calendar operated by a central moon-tipped hand. Three windows measuring the moonphase, month and the day could be reset using the external pusher on the left side of the case and the quickset crown. The MM250 adopted a new color with the copper/salmon variant, 25 of which were made into the individually-numbered Mission Moon cases.
