A Closer Look at The HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner+

The space race is on in the horological community. Recent civilian trips to outer space fueled our sense of wonder and brought the futuristic notion of commercial space travel into the present. Luxury watchmakers are getting in on the excitement and producing timepieces that keep us looking upward, filling our minds with inspiration and giving us something here on earth to remind us how far we've come. HYT joined in the fervor for space-themed watches with its latest model called the HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner.

Inspiration for the HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner

Europastar shares the background and inspiration for the Supernova Blue Moon Runner. They point to the fascination we've had with the stars going back to a sculpture of the moon found in Knowth, Ireland called Orthostat 47, from the third century BC. Archaeologists found written records of eclipse viewing from 1223 BC clay tablets in Ugarit. Moos cycles were observed by Babylonian astronomers in the 8th century BC. We've been fascinated by the moon and stars since antiquity. We've come a long way through the centuries, from looking upward and trying to understand the heavens to travel outside of the earth's atmosphere. Davide Cerrato is credited with the design of the HYT Moon Runner. He's the CEO of HYT, formerly head of design at Montblanc and Tudor. HYT's new model is based on our ambitions for scientific knowledge and getting the accuracy of lunar phases perfected. It's a representation of the moon and its cycles in a fully functional timepiece. HYT has a history of promoting continued fascination with the moon. This is just one more example of its love affair with the celestial. The HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner is deserving of a closer look.

The HYT Supernova Blue Moon runner at a glance

Monochrome notes that the new Supernova Blue Moon Runner is powered by the same construction and design as the Hasteroid Green model, but they made a few changes to give it a new personality in the space theme. We love the new dial display rendered in 3D. The first look can be a bit confusing but when you take a second look, the lunar phase representations along with satellite day and month indicators are brilliant. The innovative timepiece displays rotating lunar cycles, calendar functions, and fluidic hours. The watch takes on the appearance of a space vessel.

A Closer look at the HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner

We begin our examination of the finer points of the HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner with the technical specifications. the case is uniquely crafted in a sandwich style in grey and blue titanium. The diameter is a large 48 mm x 52.3 mm with a depth of 13.3 mm. The crown is also titanium in black in a screw-down style. The dial features Supersnoval blue fluid hours with applied Arabic hour numerals. They're placed on the outer ring with luminescence added for legibility in low light conditions. The minutes' track is in matte black featuring 5-minute intervals with the minute's hand placed on the rotating blue disc. The months and days appear in two rings in matte black. The center of the dial features a spherical revolving moon with the moon phase indicated at the circular aperture. All minutes, hours hands, minutes track, date, and months tracks are coated with white SuperLumiNova.

The movement

The movement was created by Eric Coudray. It is a caliber HYT 601-MO, hand-wound that beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour with 41 jewels. The power reserve is 72 hours. Functions include a spherical moon with lunar phases, retrograde fluidic hours, minutes, dates, and months. The strap is black rubber with blue Alcantara for a two-tone aesthetic. It closes with a black titanium clasp. Hodinkee explains, HYT perfected the use of capillary tubes with clear and colored fluids. These fluids are naturally repellant colors that never combine. The liquids become propelled by the expansion and contractions of the bellows system, sealed in an airtight compartment. It's a brilliant technology that we see in all HYT watch models. It is a precision system that involves a 12-hour advancement of the fluids around the dial, allowing for fluid features. Changes in temperature also affect fluid expansion and contractions. HYT engineers built an internal thermal compensation system to ensure that the fluid pressure maintained at the correct levels. If not for the safeguard, external temperature changes could throw the timing off. The watch is water-resistant up to 50 meters.

Price and availability

The HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner is a limited edition collection. HYT will only release 27 of them for sale throughout the world. The price is CHF 100,000 or $105,065.80 in USD. Anyone interested in purchasing the HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner should contact HYT for details about ordering the Supernova Blue Moon Runner and its release dates.

Final thoughts

The HYT Supernova Blue Moon Runner is one of many new space-themed watches released by upscale watchmakers for the luxury market. As we ponder the possibilities of advancing technologies that take us beyond our wildest imagination, we have horologists as caught up in the notion of commercial space travel as the rest of us. These innovative watchmakers spark our imaginations with wearable technology that brings us closer to understanding the lunar cycles. We can observe the moon phases at a glance on the wrist. We may marvel at the new technologies that propel passengers to outer space for a few minutes' excursion above the earth's atmosphere. We also have impressive technology here on the ground. The technology is as advanced as the new rockets propelling people into space. Advances in watchmaking technologies have taken it to a new level. The world is moving at a fast pace. It's difficult for some of us old-timers to keep up. All we know is that we like what we're seeing and experiencing. The technologies are complicated but understandable once explained. The Supernova Blue Moon Runner is just the latest in a series of magnificent technological wonders produced by HYT. We look forward to many more in the years ahead.