A timepiece
that’s out of this world
Members of
JPL’s Mars Exploration Rover mission are sporting a new power watch,
but it’s no ordinary timepiece like a Rolex, a Breitling, or a Patek
Philippe. This wristwatch follows Martian time.
On Mars,
one solar day is roughly 39 minutes longer than it is on Earth. That means
the Mars watch, true to the planet’s longer day, runs 39 minutes
slower than conventional Earth-based timekeepers.
The special
watch was needed to keep track of the Martian sunrise because the Mars
rovers Spirit and Opportunity run on solar power. In order to make use
of every minute of Martian daylight, they need to follow the Martian sun.
JPL employees turned to Executive Jewelers, in Montrose, to see if a watchmaker
could design a timepiece that could help them keep track of time on another
planet.
Garo Anserlian,
a master watchmaker and president of the company, says at first he thought
the request was a joke. “A watch that loses 39 minutes a day?”
Anserlian remembers wondering. But the JPL employees were serious, so
he got to work and had a sample within a month.
“I
used existing watches, ones that are mechanical and self-winding, and
modified them so that they lose 39 minutes and 25 seconds every day,”
he says. He uses Seikos, Citizens, and Orients for their reliability and
relatively low cost.
The watches,
which are not very practical here on Earth, have nevertheless piqued the
interest of watch collectors and Mars buffs, he says. “They are
buying them as collector’s pieces,” he says. “We number
them, provide a certificate, and engrave the number on the back of the
watch.” He says he is making only 1,000 of the novelty wristwatches.
Anserlian
has since expanded his line to 20 models, including a ladies’ watch.
Buyers can choose different base metals; options include a date and calendar
display. The watch with an image of Mars on its face reads “Mars
Local Solar Time.”
Prices start
at about $200, and the costliest is the $500 presidential model, which
Anserlian says he is sending to Governor Schwarzenegger and to President
George W. Bush.
Anserlian
is also making watches that keep Earth time but with a Mars face; these
go for about $70. “Some people are even sending me old pocketwatches
to convert them,” he says. Pictures of the watches, and an order
form, are available at www.executivejewelers.com.
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Explore
Mars from your desktop
Anyone with
an Internet connection can now see the Red Planet through the rovers’
eyes at the new MarsQuest Online interactive web-site, which extends the
power of JPL’s Mars Exploration Rover Mission site to offer a more
in-depth exploration experience. MarsQuest Online includes a full set
of images from Spirit and Opportunity, along with daily
updates. Viewers can see the most recent panoramic images, rocks, and
soil investigated by the rovers; follow the twin robotic geologists as
they navigate the planet’s surface; and perform 3-D virtual flyovers
of prominent land features. Visit www.marsquestonline.org/mer.
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