During his day-long visit to India on Monday, Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to discuss ways to strengthen bilateral ties.
A special Swiss-made watch called the ‘Mission to the Sun’ was given to EAM Jaishankar by Minister Cassis during the meeting. Jaishankar used the occasion to thank the donor and to highlight India’s space exploration programs, particularly the Aditya-L1. “I appreciate him giving me the ‘Mission to the Sun’ Swatch. India is living up to it through the Aditya-L1 mission,” Jaishankar stated in a post on X.
What special in ‘Mission to the Sun’ Swatch?
•In honor of the legendary Speedmaster Moonwatch—the first watch ever worn on the moon—OMEGA X Swatch represents the partnership between Swatch and OMEGA.
• To put people on the moon, the US government launched the Apollo program in 1963. As the only watch to successfully complete stringent testing, the Omega chronograph was designated as the official timepiece for astronauts with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
•On July 20, 1969, NASA astronaut Buzz Aldrin wore the Omega Speedmaster when he set foot on the moon.
• Years later, the Omega Speedmaster remains the official watch for NASA astronauts, symbolizing its enduring legacy and reliability in space exploration.
• The collection consists of eleven models, each named after a planetary body in the solar system, featuring the innovative Bioceramic material fused with key OMEGA Speedmaster Moonwatch design elements.
• The ‘Mission to Sun’ Swatch is a bright sun-yellow model with a sun-brushed golden-coloured dial, white velcro strap, and orange accents on the chronograph’s hands, subdials, and tachymeter scale.
• All models share distinctive design elements such as bio-sourced glass construction, the “hidden” S in the centre of the crystal, circular pattern on the dial outer ring, recessed subdials, unique Bioceramic touch and markers for glow-in-the-dark.
The non-limited collection is available for purchase at selected Swatch stores, with a limit of one watch per person per store per day.
What is ISRO’s Aditya-L1?
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has successfully achieved its inaugural solar mission, Aditya-L1, reaching its destination at Lagrange Point 1 on January 6.
• Launched on September 2, the spacecraft will focus on studying the sun, particularly the solar corona and its impact on space weather.
• In four months, the satellite traveled about 1.5 million kilometers, or a small portion of the distance between Earth and the Sun.
• By taking advantage of gravity when positioned at Lagrange Point 1, the spacecraft uses less fuel.
• For an estimated five years, Aditya-L1, carrying seven payloads, will observe the sun through in-situ observations and remote sensing.
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