This watch went to the moon (and now you can wear it)

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This Bulova watch worn by Apollo 15 commander David Scott will open at auction at $50,000.
This Bulova watch worn by Apollo 15 commander David Scott will open at auction at $50,000.
Photo: RR Auction

When work takes you to the lunar surface, even the smallest detail should have a Plan B.

Apollo 15 commander David Scott donned his personal Bulova watch for his final moonwalk in July 1971 after the crystal on his NASA-issued timepiece fell off during a previous walk. As an idea, it proved priceless. As a piece of history, it’s worth is expected to exceed $50,000.

The Scott watch, the only privately owned watch every worn on the moon, is the centerpiece of a space memorabilia auction set to take opening online bids on Oct. 15.

A catalog of dozens of items, from autographs and mission patches to pieces of spacesuit and other mission items can be seen here on the website for RR Auction of Boston.

Mission-worn watches rarely appear at auction. Apollo astronauts were given Omega chronographs and, once back on Earth, the government property was retrieved and placed in archives for eventual museum display.

Scott, the seventh man to walk on the moon, decided just before liftoff to carry the extra watch because of how crucial time is for determining oxygen levels carried in their suits and to ensure he and fellow astronaut Jim Irwin could leave the moon in time to rendezvous with the orbiting command module.

Apollo 15 astronaut  David Scott wearing the Bulova watch during his third moon walk.
Apollo 15 astronaut David Scott wearing the Bulova watch during his third moon walk.
Photo: RR Auction

“I was fully responsible for the mission and safety of my crew,” Scott wrote in a letter that accompanies the watch for auction. “Among the decisions I made, the monitoring and use of time was perhaps the most important.”

Scott and Irwin conducted three EVAs (Extra-Vehicular Activities is the term used for any spacewalk) and NASA photos show Scott wearing the Bulova on a large velcro strap as he salutes the flag on the final walk.

There is also a photograph of the Bulova on his wrist after returning to Earth and the watch today has some minor rusting from splashdown. The band that comes with the Bulova was also worn during the first two walks supporting the NASA-issued Omega.

The watch will start at $50,000. The auction will conclude Oct. 22 at RR Auction’s Boston gallery.

Source: Space.com

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