#MoonwatchUniverse

[moonwatchuniverse]

March 1, 1924... remembering Donald “Deke” Slayton Would be 100th birthday for USAF pilot/astronaut Donald "Deke Slayton, selected a NASA astronaut in 1959, USAF Captain Donald Slayton became one of the original Mercury 7 astronauts. However centrifuge training electrocardiodiagrams pointed out he had a heart condition, so he became chief of the astronaut office, deciding on crew planning for the Gemini and Apollo programs. In March 1972, NASA announced that Slayton had returned to flight status and in this way he became DMP - Docking Module Pilot for the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in July 1975. Wristwatch-wise, Donald Slayton wore a lot of watches (Accutron, Breitling, Bulova, Omega,...)  and he was the first of the NASA astronauts to be spotted wearing an Omega Speedmaster CK2998-4 in December 1962. By June 1963, three NASA astronauts (Donald Slayton, Walter Schirra & Leroy Cooper) had a personal Speedmaster CK2298. Although bezelless since June 1963, Slayton kept wearing his Speedmaster CK2298 untill June 1965. Note in this 1991 portrait, Donald Slayton wore his Gold "Apollo 11" tribute Omega Speedmaster BA 145.022-69 n° 27 chronograph on yellow Gold bracelet awarded in November 1969. (Photo: Pam Francis portraits)

[wristwatchlover]

July 1974, the Soyuz 14 crew, cosmonauts Yuri Artyukhin and Pavel Popovich on the Baikonour launchpad ready for their 14-days mission aboard the Salyut 3 space station. Flight engineer Artyukhin wore an Omega Flightmaster cal 911 chronograph, which was auctioned at Heritage Auctions in 2016 for US $ 13750. (Photo: RKA/TASS)

[moonwatchuniverse]

25 years ago… John Glenn in space again Between October 29 and November 7, 1998 US senator, US Marine Corps naval aviator and NASA veteran astronaut John Glenn made his second spaceflight aged 77, making him the oldest person to travel into Earth orbit. In February 1962, John Glenn had become the first NASA astronaut to orbit the Earth onboard "Friendship 7" spacecraft. Space shuttle orbiter mission STS-95 lasted 8 days 21 hours 43 minutes. Glenn performed both biological & medical experiments as a human guinea pig for geriatric studies. During the flight, Glenn wore a NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster X-33, the indispensable toolwatch for modern day spacefarers. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

60 years ago… Deke Slayton In November 1963, Donald "Deke" Slayton resigned from his commission in the US Air Force after he was permanently disqualified from flying in space and became a civilian executive for NASA, becoming director of Flight Crew Operations in early 1966. On March 13, 1972, after a medications treatment, NASA announced that Deke Slayton had returned to flight status. In July 1975, Slayton flew as Docking Module Pilot during the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project mission. Photos show that Slayton had been wearing Accutron & Accutron “Astronaut” pilot watches between 1962 and 1973. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

July 16, 1969... Apollo 11 launchday at Moonport Cape Canaveral During suit-up on launchday, Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong wore his NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster chronograph on his righthand wrist. However, Armstrong left this Speedmaster wrist watch onboard Lunar Lander "Eagle" as a backup timing device. During suit-up, Apollo 11 LMP Edwin Aldrin wore his NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster on his lefthand wrist. However, at the time of lunar landing, Aldrin wore his Speedmaster wrist watch on his righthand wrist as seen in NASA photo AS11-40-5903. Omega didn't spot this and in their advertizing campaign drew a Speedmaster on Buzz Aldrin's lefhand wrist. So keen observers clearly noticed this in their drawing with Buzz wearing 2 Speedies! Post-Apollo 11, Aldrin's NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster 105.012-65 (NASA n° 43) got lost during transfer to NASM. (Photos/Artwork: EH Space Art/NASA/MoonwatchUniverse)

[moonwatchuniverse]

1966... Gemini VIII splashdown & post recovery March 17, 1966, Gemini VIII astronauts Neil Armstrong and David Scott pose with the divers of the US Navy recovery team. The Gemini VIII mission was cut short after a docking problem with the unmanned Agena target rocket. Re-entry took place over China with splashdown 800 kilometers east of Okinawa. Photo taken just before debarking USS Leonard F Mason in Naha harbor in Southern Japan. Note Scott’s NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster on black velcro at his left wrist. During this mission, besides his NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster, Neil Armstrong also wore a Longines Lindberg big crown aviator watch which belonged to his childhood hero James "Jimmie" Mattern. However, in the foreground, the Navy issued Tudor 7928 diving toolwatch on stainless steel bracelet at the wrist of the diver looks far more interesting! (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

April 1966... Gemini water egress training Gemini astronauts Eugene Cernan and Edwin Aldrin seen during water egress training for the Gemini program onboard NASA motor vessel retriever in the Gulf of Mexico. By April 1966, NASA had received 35 Omega Speedmaster chronographs while having 52 active astronauts. MoonwatchUniverse has been delving into archives to bring up a complete overview of how & when the NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster chronographs were distributed to prime & backup astronaut crews of the Gemini & Apollo era. Note for MoonwatchUniverse this is the earliest photo showing Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin wearing a NASA-issued Speedmaster. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

Apollo 14... Playing golf on the lunar surface During the 1971 Apollo 14 lunar landing mission, commander Alan B. Shepard played a few golf shots in the Fra Mauro region on the Moon! NASA astronauts and sports always went together... 5 decades ago “Golf” became the sport of almost every astronaut as in 1968, astronaut chief Deke Slayton requested that he could play with other astronauts  and approached Golf-pro Danny Lawler to give the Apollo astronauts some  private lessons. Veteran-astronaut Alan Shepard was a keen golf player since the Mercury days and had the idea to play golf on the Moon ! On Apollo 14, Commander Shepard carried a make-shift Iron-6 attached to a geologic sample stick and hit two golf balls on the Moon. The make of the Golf balls was never revealed but the actual Golf stick sits in the U.S.G.A. museum in New Jersey - USA. Note astronaut/Admiral Alan Shepard wore an Omega Speedmaster "Moonwatch" chronograph in the photo holding the make-shift Iron-6 assembly geologic sample tool. (Photo: USGA/UPI)

[moonwatchuniverse]

RIP Rear Admiral NASA-astronaut Ken Mattingly October 31, 2023 Thomas Ken Mattingly, passed away aged 87. Selected a NASA-astronaut in 1966, Mattingly flew on Apollo 16, space shuttle mission STS-4 and STS 51-C. Note in this Apollo 16 portrait, Ken Mattingly was wearing a NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster chronograph (n° 50) with a light metal "Timely Calendar" folded around the bracelet. Mattingly flew 21 days 4 hours 34 minutes in space. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

60 years ago… Deke Slayton In November 1963, Donald “Deke” Slayton resigned from his commission in the US Air Force after he was permanently disqualified from flying in space and became a civilian executive for NASA, becoming director of Flight Crew Operations in early 1966. On March 13, 1972, after a medications treatment, NASA announced that Deke Slayton had returned to flight status. In July 1975, Slayton flew as Docking Module Pilot during the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project mission. Photos show that Slayton had been wearing Accutron & Accutron “Astronaut” pilot watches between 1962 and 1973. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

Remembering Apollo 1 ... January 1967, NASA astronaut Roger Chaffee and his wife Martha posed for photographs during their end-of-year 1966-1967 holiday period as astronaut couples spent Christmas time and New Year at their homes near Houston - Texas. Together with NASA astronauts Edward White & Virgil Gus Grissom, they were ready to start training for the manned Apollo lunar spaceflight program. Apollo 1 in particular. All Apollo 1 astronauts wore NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster 105.003 chronographs, on a lightweight steel mesh Jacoby Bender champion bracelet. Note that during photo sessions, most NASA astronauts had the Speedmaster chronograph hand running ! (Photo: AP/WBESS/NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

55 years ago... Apollo 8 In preparation of the December 1968 Apollo 8 mission, the prime crew William Anders, Frank Borman and James Lovell participated in water egress training aboard the NASA motor vessel retriever in the Gulf of Mexico on October 25, 1968. Anno 2023, all astronauts are still alive, Frank Borman (95), James Lovell (95) and William Anders (90). Note, on the right, that astronaut James Lovell was wearing his personal Rolex GMT-master Pepsi 1675 wristwatch in true naval aviator style with his G-1 US Navy leather flight jacket. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

60 years ago... NASA astronaut group 3 October 18, 1963 as NASA presented the third astronaut group nicknamed "" The Fourteen "" with 7 USAF officer pilots, 4 US Navy officer aviators, 1 US Marine Corps officer navigator and 2 civilians. Top row: Richard Gordon, Theodore Freeman, Don Eisele, Michael Collins, Walter Cunningham, Clifton Williams and David Scott. Front row: Roger Chaffee, Eugene Cernan, Alan Bean, Charles Bassett, William Anders, Edwin Aldrin and Russell Schweickart. Those coming from the military were often wearing Bulova 3818 wrist watches with a 24 hours dial. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

55 years ago... February 26, 1969 The Apollo 9 astronauts in the very last stages of NASA training and spaceflight preparations. Apollo 9 Command Module Pilot David Scott checks out a 16mm Maurer Motion Picture Camera to be used during the upcoming Apollo mission during which both the Command/Service module, “Gumdrop” built by North American Aviation, and the Lunar Excursion Module, “Spider” built by Grumman aircraft, would be tested for the very first time in Low Earth Orbit. During a break from training for their upcoming space mission, Apollo 9 crew got a haircut before overgoing final procedures & checklists. Each of the astronauts wore a NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster chronograph, David Scott in particular a Speedmaster with a foldable timely bracelet calendar. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

NASA astronaut chief Donald Slayton USAF Captain Donald Kent "Deke" Slayton (1924-1993) was one of the 1959 original NASA astronauts, the “ Mercury 7 “ before he was put on non-flight status on March 15, 1962 for medical reasons. He became senior manager of the astronaut office, selecting crew rotations. Fast forward to March 13, 1972 as Donald Slayton regained NASA flight status and was selected to fly as DMP - Docking Module Pilot to fly during the July 1975 Apollo-Soyuz Test Project mission. This 1965 photo show Donald Slayton wearing an Omega Speedmaster CK2998 chronograph, a watch he wore since 1962. Moreover, Slayton liked his wrist watches as he wore Breitling, Omega and the battery-powered tuning fork Accutron "Astronaut" pilot watches. Together with Walter Schirra and Gordon Cooper, he was among the first NASA astronauts to wear an Omega Speedmaster because of their shared interest in racing cars. USAF Major Slayton officially retired from NASA in 1980 but continued to serve in an advisory role for the first Space Shuttle test flights in 1981. (Photo: NASA)

[moonwatchuniverse]

RIP NASA astronaut Ken Mattingly October 31, 2023 Rear Admiral & NASA astronaut Ken Mattingly passed away aged 87. He flew on Apollo 16, STS-4 and STS51-C. 1972, April 27, the Apollo 16 returned to Earth After 11 days, the Apollo 16 astronauts, CMP Thomas Mattingly, LMP Charles Duke and Commander John Young are greeted aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga in the Pacific Ocean, 350 km southeast of the island Kiritimati. Two days later, in Houston Texas, the astronauts were reunited with their families as this photo shows Ken Mattingly embrasing his wife Elisabeth. Note his NASA-issued Omega Speedmaster n°50. (Photo: NASA/AP)