Elite Traveler September-October 2018

ASTRONOMY

The moon, stars and planets have always enthralled humankind. Over the centuries, scientists and horologists have studied celestial bodies, their paths and influence on our lives. We have traveled to the moon and back, have an International Space Station floating above us and continue to explore vast new horizons. In the past decade, that ongoing love affair with the sky has made its way to our wrists in a profound way thanks to the tireless endeavors and ingenuity of some of the world’s finest watchmakers. They have created true astronomical functions, including equation of time (the discrepancy between real and apparent solar time), real-time displays of the constellations in two hemispheres and increasingly accurate moon phases. In their quest to showcase astronomy on the wrist, these marques are filing a host of important patents for innovation and technology. And on the other end of the spectrum, some take inspiration from the beauty and mystery of ctions, they mak display the heavenly skies; instead of astronomical fun e a cosmic connection via creative designs, interesting techniques and unusual materials.

OFFICINE PANERAI L’ASTRONOMO LUMINOR 1950TOURBILLONMOON PHASES EQUATIONOF TIMEGMT If you haven’t figured it out already, the name of Panerai’s first-ever moonphase watch says it all — except for the complexity of building it. The L’Astronomo Luminor 1950 TourbillonMoon Phases Equation of Time GMT watch will be built on a made-to-order basis, allowing its master watchmakers to personalize the geographic coordinates selected by the buyer. The watch pays homage to Galileo’s astronomical studies, is crafted of brushed titaniumwith a sapphire caseback, has a moonphase indication and an innovative, patent-pending system indicating the date that uses polarized crystals. Even though each date is inscribed in the crystal, the numbers are virtually invisible except when aligned with the date window. The watch can be customized upon ordering, with a choice of case metals, finish, hand colors, Super-LumiNova color and whichever geographic coordinates are closest to your heart, allowing you to take a piece of home with you. $235,000, available at Panerai in NewYork, contact Alicia Alizadeh, storemanager, alicia.alizadeh@ panerai.com, +1 212 223 1562, panerai.com

ACHINE 2 ine 2, MB&F teamed with watchmaker Stepan Sarpaneva to create the world’s first projected moonphase display watch. The second collaboration between the pair is a culmination of both MB&F’s concept of projection and Sarpaneva’s mastery of the art of the moonphase. The projection systemwas first used in its Horological Machine No 8 to project hours and minutes via an optical prism that vertically refracts the impression. Here, the projection underscores the beauty of the detailed moon disc, which Sarpaneva painstakingly creates entirely by hand. The horological creation features an open-worked titanium web that surrounds the brand’s signature battle-ax rotor and supports the golden moon. In addition to offering the world’s first moonphase projection on a watch, MoonMachine 2 has bidirectional jumping hours, trailing minutes and magnified hour and minute segments. It will be made in 18K 5N rose gold, titanium and black titanium, with 12 available in each color. $95,000, available atWestime Beverly Hills, contact Greg Simonian, president, beverlyhills@westime.com, +1 310 888 8880, mbandf.com MB&FMOONM For the MoonMach

LOUISMOINET SPACEWALKER

Inspired by the adventurous early era of space exploration, Louis Moinet’s SpaceWalker watch is dedicated to the now 84-year-old Alexey Leonov, a pioneering cosmonaut who in 1965 became the first man to spacewalk. He also initiated one of the most important gestures of the era: an outer-space handshake with NASA astronauts in 1975 during the Apollo-Soyuz mission, the first joint space mission between the Soviet Union and America at the height of the ColdWar. The timepiece features an oversized satellite tourbillon at 12 o’clock that represents Leonov’s ship on his Voskhod 2 mission. The small diamond revolving around the tourbillon symbolizes Leonov walking in space. The aventurine background recalls the starry sky, and the dial uses a top-secret, graphic material to depict a nebula of celestial colors. Louis Moinet will make 12 engraved watches, representing the 12 minutes Leonov walked in space, in 18K white gold or 18K rose gold. $199,500, available at Grenon’s of Newport, Rhode Island, contact Ray Grenon, owner, info@grenons.com, +1 401 846 0598, louismoinet.com