In recognition of this, Omega was awarded the Snoopy Award by the Apollo 13 astronauts, "for dedication, professionalism, and outstanding contributions in support of the first United States Manned Lunar Landing Project." In 1970, after an electrical failure caused an explosion in the Apollo 13 and the crew had to evacuate to the tiny Aquarius Lunar Module to conserve power, pilot Jack Swigert used his Speedmaster to precisely calculate the critical 14 seconds of engine boost to angle the shuttle for re-entry into the earth's atmosphere. This case back design is still being used today on the Speedmaster Professional watches. The arrangement of the text was then changed in 1971 to incorporate the Hippocampus on the back as well. The engraved Hippocampus was removed and the phrases “The first watch worn on the moon” and “Flight qualified by NASA for all manned space missions” were engraved. Moreover, to commemorate the exceptional achievement, the case backs of the Speedmaster Professional were changed. The public were given the opportunity to purchase model numbers 33 - 1000. Watches 29 to 32 were offered to Swiss watch industry leaders and politicians, without any engraved number. Model numbers 3 - 28 were given to the NASA astronauts. These watches, however, were later returned to Omega due to the US government’s strict gifting protocol. The very first of these was created for US President, Richard Nixon, with number two allocated to the US Vice President Spiro Agnew. This gold Speedmaster housed the calibre 861 and was Omega’s very first commemorative numbered edition, with only 1,014 models being produced from 1969 to 1973.
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