Swiss watchmaker URWERK has introduced the UR-10 SpaceMeter, a groundbreaking timepiece that measures not just time, but the distances Earth travels through space. The watch represents a significant departure from the brand’s typical designs while maintaining its reputation for innovation.

The UR-10 marks an unusual turn for URWERK, featuring a round dial, central hands, and three sub-dials—elements rarely seen in the company’s portfolio. Despite these conventional features, the watch firmly belongs to URWERK’s “Special Projects” collection, known for pushing boundaries in haute horlogerie.

What sets the UR-10 apart is its function. Unlike traditional watches with chronographs or calendar complications, the UR-10’s three sub-dials track astronomical distances rather than time intervals, earning it the designation “SpaceMeter.”

The watch’s three counters serve as astronomical instruments, each tracking different aspects of Earth’s motion:

The counter at 2 o’clock, marked “EARTH,” measures the planet’s daily rotation in 10-kilometer increments, with graduations of 500 meters. At 4 o’clock, the “SUN” counter advances in 20-kilometer steps, recording every 1,000 kilometers Earth travels in its solar orbit. The counter at 9 o’clock, labeled “ORBIT,” combines both trajectories on synchronised scales, marking every 1,000 kilometers of rotation and 64,000 kilometers of orbital travel.

The caseback features a peripheral hand tracing hours on a 24-hour scale, corresponding to one complete Earth rotation. Engravings indicate both rotation (read clockwise) and revolution (read counterclockwise), reflecting Earth’s actual counterclockwise revolution around the sun.

“Time and Space are the same reality. The UR-10 depicts two characteristics of our earthly condition; to be bound by human time, and to be mere passengers on a planet constantly travelling through the cosmos.”

Martin Frei, Art Director and Co-Founder of URWERK

The UR-10’s creation stems from the Baumgartner family’s watchmaking heritage. In 1996, Felix Baumgartner’s father, Gérard, discovered an unusual pendulum clock by Gustave Sandoz, a 19th-century French chronometrist who served as Horologist-Mechanic to the King and Navy from 1874.

The clock puzzled Gérard with its three unconventional sub-dials and unusually fast-beating pendulum. After careful study, he discovered it was a planetary trajectory tracker designed to measure Earth’s rotation across three time scales.

“My father, a custodian of horological tradition, gave me a classic clock, with regular hands… that do not tell time. To me, a watchmaker creating atypical, handless watches alongside Martin Frei. This gift became a true bridge between two worlds: my father’s devotion to classical horology, and URWERK’s quest for disruption. It was the spark that ignited our UR-10 — the very first chronometer to express Earth’s movements in kilometers.”

Felix Baumgartner, master watchmaker and co-founder of URWERK

The URWERK UR-10 SpaceMeter will be produced as a limited edition of 25 pieces each in titanium and black versions, retailing in Malaysia at RM367,500 (approximately USD 82,000).

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Visuals courtesy of The Hour Glass