Can anyone ID the watch in this photo? A cursory glance makes me think a Speedmaster but I had never seen this strap in the Apollo program. Is this not a watch at all and some sort of switch for the headset?

http://airandspace.si.edu/events/apollo11/objects/apolloartifact.cfm?id=A19791737000

 

what else would it be?

 

My curiosity stems from it being included in a headset display. I had just never seen it matched with a headset or with that odd strap. Does not look to be a standard apollo era strap.

 

The strap appears to be the normal long version Velcro watchband with what looks like something similar to a pair of gold name pins, but I can't make anything out. The watch and strap wouldn't be part of the headset assembly, that's well documented on the internet.

It certainly looks odd, all things taken together. For the strap, the green is the olive drab color that one would expect to see as reinforcement for the steel ring and Velcro hook end. It's not immediately obvious, but the strap is passed though both spring bars, then slackly double backed from the steel ring. As the watch is half resting on the steel ring, it gives an appearance of stiffness to the Velcro.

 

This thread really peak my interest. I also found it curious why the Speedmaster was included in the display and the accompanying information next to it appears to make no reference to it. The strap was also very interesting. So I set out to find out more about it. Here is the official answer I received from the National Air and Space museum curator that handles Astronaut personal equipment.

The chronograph in the photo is not a flown one. The display is at the Science Museum, London, and I believe I might have taken a better photo of it myself a few years ago. This photo was from a colleague who visited there in 2002. My photo from 2009 is probably on a different hard drive than where I’m located now, but I’ll try to find it next week and get it to you.

I know for certain that we do not have a chronograph on loan to them, so this is not one of ours. It’s possible they either had one, not flown, in their own collection, or are borrowing this from somebody else.

If I do receive the additional image, with approval, I'll post it here so maybe we can solve the strap mystery.

 

thanks everyone. Glad I wasn't the only one who was scratching his head.

 

I've tried to focus the image, it looks a lot like a pair of "Ω OMEGA" name pins stuck on the NASA watch strap.




And here's my mock-up

 

Interesting. If they knew their watches, they would use a 105.012-65 in that display, the same reference Armstrong used.