In 1976, the world was taken by storm with a new and bizarre kind of watch by the company Bulova. Called the Accutron, this device was the world’s fully-electronic watch. It also captured the hearts of many by having a unique design showing the inner workings of the watch as it functions. This device sold over 5 million units, and a few of them went into the company of iconic celebrities such as Joe DiMaggio, Paul Newman, and Elvis Presley. However, watches were the only thing that Accutron tech was used for. The tech was quickly adopted by the US Air Force, The CIA, and NASA. The Accutron Astronaut was developed to meet the demands of high-speed flight and travel.
To go into the deeper specs, The Astronaut was able to be operated at higher temperatures handling up to 210 degrees Fahrenheit (or 98.89 degrees Celsius). It was also incredibly resistant to disturbances as it continued operations against shock and high g-forces. Lastly, the Astronaut was extremely precise as it only experienced a deviation of fewer than 2 seconds a day. Many astronauts agree that moon missions would not be possible without the accuracy of Accutron technology. It was present on 46 Apollo Missions, as both body-worn and instrument panel timing devices.
Learn more about how the simple gift of a watch changed design history in the infographic below:
