Survival on Mars is no longer merely a fascination with hypotheticals precipitated by Edgar Rice Burroughs and his stories. While there is still a good deal of hypotheses left to resolve, science has come to learn so much in the past 100 years that the idea of visiting the Red Planet is closer than ever. If humans were to visit Mars, however, we’d need some tools to help us on our travels. Just like when mankind went to space and, soon after, the Moon, watch brands competed to supply astronauts with instruments to aid them with knowing the time back home and with on-the-fly calculations.
Similarly, with Mars exploration on the horizon, astronauts will need watches that can withstand the conditions they might undergo. Known for supplying a fledgling NASA with the Spacematic AR back in 1962, Swiss brand Fortis has some history with space watches and now they’ve made a model specifically for Mars. Let’s dive in…
A Space-Tested Movement
It’s (relatively) easy for a wristwatch to survive space travel if they’re kept within the confines — much like the astronaut wearing it — of a space suit. But to test its movement under the actual conditions of bare space, Fortis embarked on a highly-publicized mission back in 2022 with the help of the Swedish Space Corporation. Equipped with the first-ever movement (made with the help of La Joux-Perret) specifically designed for use in outer space, thirteen of its WERK 17 chronographs were sent 30km into space, naked, with the help of a helium gas-propelled balloon. Oh yeah, and they had to make it safely back to Earth afterwards for the mission to be a success.
Well, the mission was a success, and eleven of the thirteen watches worked perfectly fine, with only one or two experiencing minor mechanical issues. About a month later, the WERK 17 caliber debuted to the public in the brand-new Stratoliner, with dials inspired by the Virgin Galactic civilian space flights. It was a beautiful timepiece but more than anything, this 2022 mission showed onlookers that the watchmaker had the dedication and intuition required to take human engineering even farther, literally.
The AMADEE-24 Mission
To test a watch for space conditions, Fortis was able to send a watch into space. But to test a watch for Mars, an analog simulation must suffice. Earlier this year, the Austrian Space Forum and the Armenian Aerospace Agency teamed up on a four-week-long mission that simulated what it would be like on Mars. Hosted in Armenia with the command center back in Austria, the AMADEE-24 recreated conditions that astronauts would face on Mars. Along with their space suits, they were accompanied by other equipment and robots, allowing over 200 scientists to conduct an array of experiments while testing and studying any equipment that would be used — including the Novonaut AMADEE-24 wristwatch.
The Novonaut AMADEE-24 Watch Basics
For its most recent project, Fortis went back to the space-tested WERK 17 while using its Novonaut series as a base for the new AMADEE-24 edition. Like previous Novonaut chronographs, the 42mm case is water resistant to 200m but this time titanium material has been used for the first time in the series, which makes it much lighter in weight. A titanium bracelet was used as well.
As for the movement, it was slightly altered, removing the 12-hour subdial and adding the mission badge in its place. Although, the 30-minute “Grand Counter” and running seconds registers are still there. Featuring a day-date display, the dial glows extremely bright thanks to the three-dimensional Lumicast on the numerals. In terms of mission-specific details, the watch adds one important feature. For the matte titanium rotating bezel, there’s the standard 60-minute scale, however, every 10 minutes is emphasized in some way. This is due to the time it takes for a two-way communication signal to get from Mars back to Earth. This way, the astronaut can anticipate the delay.
Case Size: 42mm
Case Thickness: 15mm
Case Material: Titanium
Water Resistance: 200m
Movement: Automatic chronograph
Band: Titanium bracelet or black gravity hook strap
Limited Edition?: Yes, 100
Pricing & Availability
Limited to just 100 pieces, the Novonaut AMADEE-24 is currently available from Fortis’ website for $6,150.
Recap
Fortis Novonaut AMADEE-24
Fortis made the first-ever wristwatch designed for traveling to Mars, tested during the analog simulation in Armenia earlier this year. The movement was tested by Fortis back in 2022 when it was sent into space.
