Dr. Jonny Kim. (Photo Credit: Jake’s Rolex World)
According to Dr. Pierre-Yves Donzé, author of “The Making of a Status Symbol,” the Rolex Cosmograph was initially designed for American astronauts. It was after Rolex's unsuccessful attempt to collaborate with NASA in the 1960s that the brand repositioned the watch as a racing driver’s chronograph, renaming it the Cosmograph Daytona.
More than six decades later, the Daytona is (again) returning to its roots. NASA astronaut Dr. Jonny Kim arrived safely at the International Space Station last week; on his wrist, a Rolex Daytona reference 126500LN.
While it is not the first time a Daytona has been to space, Kim’s 240-day mission will set a record for the longest continuous spaceflight wearing a Rolex.
The astronaut, a Harvard graduate and former U.S. Navy SEAL, also owns a GMT-Master II, which he likely included in his Personal Preference Kit (PPK), Coronet suspects, the small bag astronauts use to carry personal items on missions.