procured 3 to 4 pieces per brand (Longines-Wittnauer, Rolex and OMEGA), and the legendary tests were carried out with these pieces and under these three brands. The watches underwent a series of processes called the “Qualification Test Procedures,” which included 11 different tests:
- High temperature: 48 hours at a temperature of 160°F (71°C) followed by 30 minutes at 200°F (93°C).
- Low temperature: 4 hours at a temperature of 0°F (-18°C).
- Temperature-Pressure: 15 cycles of heating to 160°F (71°C) for 45 minutes, followed by cooling to 0°F (-18°C) for 45 minutes at 10−6 atm.
- Relative humidity: 240 hours at temperatures varying between 68°F and 160°F (20°C and 71°C) in a relative humidity of at least 95%.
- Oxygen atmosphere: 48 hours in an atmosphere of 100% oxygen at a pressure of 0.35 atm.
- Shock: Six shocks of 40 G, each 11 milliseconds in duration, in six different directions.
- Acceleration: From 1 G to 7.25 G within 333 seconds, along an axis parallel to the longitudinal spacecraft axis.
- Decompression: 90 minutes in a vacuum of 10-6 atm at a temperature of 160°F (71°C) and 30 minutes at 200°F (93°C).
- High pressure: 1.6 atm for a minimum period of one hour.
- Vibration: Three cycles of 30 minutes of vibration varying from 5 to 2000 Hz.
- Acoustic noise: 130 DB over a frequency range of 40 to 10,000 Hz, duration 30 minutes
After an intense procedure that went from October 21st, 1964 to March 1st, 1965, only the Omega Speedmaster survived and NASA declared it operational for space exploration and flight certified