In 2019, Caladan Oceanic and EYOS Expeditions teamed up to embark on a dangerous and ambitious journey exploring and charting 39 deep-sea dives in a Triton-built, titanium-hulled submersible known as the “Limiting Factor.” One of these daring dives by undersea explorer Victor Vescovo saw the vessel reach the bottom of the Mariana Trench, earning the “Five Deeps” project a new world record for the deepest manned dive of 10,935 meters. Strapped to the outside of the submersible were three Omega Ultra Deep prototype dive watches, all of which also survived the 12-hour dive unscathed and set a new dive watch record for depth in the process.
Fast forward roughly three years later to today, and Omega has now unveiled a production version of the Ultra Deep prototype as a new extension of the Seamaster Planet Ocean line. The Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep boasts an unbelievable depth rating of 6,000m/20,000ft — ten times that of the standard Planet Ocean — and the depth rating was confirmed during testing at the Mariana Trench in 2021, where the watches were submerged to 6,269m. Omega’s new dive watch hugely benefits from innovations and technology used on the Limiting Factor submersible, with a beyond state-of-the-art case that can handle a whopping 16,000lb per square inch of pressure in near-freezing temperatures.
The watch, whose design boasts a number of pending patents, is constructed around a shockingly wearable 45.5mm case that’s crafted from either grade 5 titanium or the Swiss horologist’s new proprietary alloy “O-MEGASTEEL” — an ultra-high-performance stainless steel developed over the course of five years that’s created using a clever Pressure Electro Slag Remelting process. Keeping the Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep ticking is one of Omega’s Calibre 8912 self-winding movements with Co-Axial escapement. This Master Chronometer-certified timepiece also sports a unidirectional ceramic bezel with a Liquidmetal dive scale, a screw-down crown, and sturdy “Manta” lugs.
Backed by a five-year warranty, the Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean Ultra Deep dive watch is thus far being offered in a half-dozen different references, with the O-MEGASTEEL versions available on either a three-link O-MEGASTEEL bracelet or a rubber strap and the titanium variant sold on a polyamide NATO strap made from 100% recycled fishing nets. Available now, this world-record-setting watch starts at $11,200 and goes up to $12,300 for the most expensive grade 5 titanium version.
