A new gold MoonSwatch celebrating February’s full moon has landed in four select cities. The Omega x Swatch Mission to Moonshine Gold is expected to become a particularly sought-after edition of the watchmakers’ collaborative Mission to the Moon.
The in-demand but eminently affordable model first debuted in 2019 as a more accessible take on Omega’s spacewalking Moonwatch timepiece collection, an early reference of which was worn by the Apollo 11 astronauts who first landed on the Moon in 1969.
But instead of a gray chronograph hand, Mission to Moonshine’s is finished in Swatch’s own 18K gold alloy, reportedly comprised of 75 percent gold, 14 percent, and around 9 percent copper—the latter gives the alloy a distinct pale shade.
Omega, which is owned by Swatch Group, previously employed the Swatch gold alloy on two Speedmasters that retailed for up to $36,500—one with a green sun-brushed dial and another featuring a sun-brushed gold dial with blackened sub-dials.
Aside from its special gold chronograph hand, the Mission to Moonshine Gold is almost identical to the Mission to the Moon, which shares its core features with Swatch and Omega’s “Reach for the Planets” Moonswatch collection.
The construction employs Swatch’s Bioceramic—a mix of two-thirds ceramic and one-third castor-oil derived materials. Powered by a quartz and battery, it features an asymmetrical 42mm case, tachymeter scale with a “dot-over-90” bezel, and three black subdials. The Swatch and Omega co-branded strap is made of Velcro—the same sticky fabric used in spacesuits.
Bloomberg reports that Swatch sold over 1 million MoonSwatches in 2022, all of which were available exclusively at brick-and-mortar locations.
The Omega X Swatch Mission to Moonshine Gold will be even harder to find, as it’s only available at physical stores in Tokyo, Zurich, London and Milan for $260.
