Introducing Raketa Unveils the Baikonur with Dual Time Zones

It has been 65 years since Yuri Gagarin made the first human flight into space. This historic achievement inspired the creation of the watch brand Raketa, meaning “space rocket” in Russian — which is also celebrating its 65th anniversary this year. To mark the occasion, Raketa introduces the Baikonur, a distinctive model designed with cosmonauts in mind. Aboard the International Space Station, it is more practical to track time in 24-hour cycles; accordingly, the defining feature of this watch is its 24-hour dial, divided into contrasting black and white sections to clearly distinguish day from night.

Housed in a 42 mm stainless steel case with a thickness of 14.05 mm and a 49 mm lug-to-lug span, the watch strikes a well-proportioned presence on the wrist. Its smooth bezel and sharply angled lugs accentuate the broad, architectural planes of the design, lending it a distinctly contemporary character. The dual-crown configuration enhances both functionality and symmetry: one crown is dedicated to winding and setting the time, while the other operates the internal rotating bezel. A sapphire crystal protects the dial, while a mineral crystal caseback completes the construction. Water resistance is rated to 200 metres.

An additional crown allows the setting of a second time zone, enabling cosmonauts to track both Greenwich Mean Time — used on the ISS — and the local time of their families on Earth.

A solar compass integrated into the rotating bezel further enhances the watch’s functionality. This feature can assist cosmonauts in finding their bearings should they land off course — for example, in remote regions such as the taiga, and their electronic instruments fail. The bezel also incorporates a dual time zone 24-hour scale. As the International Space Station operates on GMT, this secondary scale enables astronauts to monitor their home time simultaneously.

The white dial provides a crisp, highly legible backdrop for a dynamic interplay of black and white scales. Both the hour and seconds hands are rendered in vivid red, creating a striking contrast against the monochromatic layout, while the minutes hand appears in black for immediate visual distinction. White Super-LumiNova is applied to the hour and minute hands, as well as the hour numerals, ensuring optimal readability in low-light conditions. 

The hour scale for both time zones is divided into contrasting black and white sectors to clearly indicate day and night. Notably, although the Raketa Baikonur features a dual-time 24-hour scale, it dispenses with the conventional additional 24-hour GMT hand; instead, its primary display itself operates on a 24-hour format rather than the traditional 12-hour system, reinforcing its technical and conceptual originality.

In zero gravity, conditions are not ideal for conventional self-winding movements, making manual winding preferable for cosmonauts. However, prolonged manual winding can cause wear to the automatic module. To address this, Raketa has developed a mechanism that disconnects the self-winding system during manual winding, protecting it from premature wear throughout space missions.

The open caseback reveals the automatic calibre 2624CA, entirely developed and manufactured at Raketa’s Saint Petersburg factory. Operating at 18,000 vibrations per hour (2.5 Hz) with a 40-hour power reserve, the movement features a bidirectional rotor adorned with multicolour inscriptions and decorated with Raketa’s signature Neva waves motif. It also incorporates a stop-seconds function for precise time setting. The mainplate and rotor are finished in dark grey steel tones, while the rotor is embellished with an image of constellations, reinforcing the model’s cosmic inspiration.

The watch is fitted with a fabric strap secured by Velcro, allowing quick adjustment and easy wear over a spacesuit. A classic leather strap is also included.

The Raketa Baikonur is not a limited edition and is priced at EUR 2,400, approximately AED 11,000.

Waqt is the official exclusive retailer of Raketa in UAE, visit our website to order.