Fortis Novonaut N-42 Titanium Legacy

The Novonaut, launched in 2023, succeeds the B-42 Cosmonauts Chronograph, which cosmonauts wore from 1994 to 2003, and the Titanium Legacy is the regular-production follow-up to the 100-piece AMADEE-24 Mars Analog Mission Timer, the first titanium Novonaut. It pairs the steel Legacy's matte black dial and bezel with gold-plated chronograph hands. The layout is the classic 7750 arrangement, with sub-dials at 6, 9 and 12 and day and date at 3, but the movement is Fortis's Werk 17, a column-wheel automatic chronograph made with La Joux-Perret and flown to 30 km on a balloon to test it in near-space conditions. It runs at 28,800 vibrations an hour for 60 hours, behind a closed caseback engraved with a rocket. The case is 42 mm, 15 mm thick and 51 mm lug to lug, rated to 200 m, on a three-row titanium Block bracelet with micro-adjustment, and the whole watch weighs 161 g.

Written 28 September 2026 from Fratello and HiConsumption.