Following the announcement of its partnership with Polaris Dawn earlier this year, Swiss luxury watch maker IWC Schaffhausen presents the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Polaris Dawn”.
The chronograph in white ceramic with a space-blue dial was designed to support the upcoming human spaceflight mission, which is targeted to launch no earlier than the fourth quarter of 2022.
Each of the four timepieces features an engraving with the name of one of the four crew members. After travelling to space and returning to Earth, the watches will be auctioned to raise funds for the life-saving work of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, a leading institution developing treatments for childhood cancer and other paediatric diseases.
IWC Schaffhausen is supporting the Polaris Dawn mission, the first of three human spaceflights planned as part of the Polaris Program, led by Jared Isaacman, the U.S entrepreneur and mission commander of last year’s Inspiration4 mission.
To support this goal, IWC has designed and donated four space-themed chronographs. The Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Polaris Dawn” (Ref. IW389111) features a 44.5-millimetre case made of white ceramic.
The chronographs feature dark blue lacquered dials printed with countless stars and the mission logo. In addition, the titanium case backs are engraved with the name of one of the four crew members.
Alongside Jared Isaacman, who will serve as commander, the crew consists of retired United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Scott “Kidd” Poteet and SpaceX Lead Space Operations Engineers Sarah Gillis and Anna Menon.
The Polaris Dawn mission will launch from the historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. After spending approximately five days in orbit, the spacecraft will return to Earth, and the four chronographs will be auctioned.
Raising funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital® previously marked a cornerstone of last year’s Inspiration4 mission. Four IWC Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Editions raised $405,000, with the overall auction results and donations reaching more than $240 million.
Technical details
Model: IWC Schaffhausen Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Edition “Polaris Dawn”, Ref. IW389111
Movement
IWC-manufactured calibre 69380
Mechanical automatic movement
Frequency: 28,800 vph / 4 Hz
Jewels: 33
Power reserve: 46 h
Functions
Chronograph function for hours, minutes and seconds
Date and day display
Small hacking seconds
Case
White ceramic case
Diameter: 44.5 mm
Height: 15.7 mm
Glass: Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Soft-iron inner case for protection against magnetic fields
Screw-in crown
Glass secured against displacement by drops in air pressure
Water-resistance: 6 bar
Dial
Space-blue dial
Rhodium plated hands
Strap
White rubber strap with leather inlay
