Omega has just announced that it created the world’s first mechanism resistant to magnetic fields greater than 1.5 tesla! Groundbreaking anti-magnetic Omega Co-Axial Calibre 8508 movement will power the brand’s Seamaster Aqua Terra watches. The new technology will be officially presented in April, at the Baselworld 2013. It is expected to be on the market later this year.

Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Anti-Magnetic Watch
At the today’s press conference at the Cité du Temps, in Geneva, high officials from Omega, ETA, ASULAB and Swatch Group have announced a great innovation. As Omega VP and Head Product Development, Jean-Claude Monachon, said, the best minds at ASULAB, ETA and Nivarox have found a solution that had been once considered impossible.

Omega Anti-Magnetic Watch Movement Press Conference Jean-Claude Monachon
The new Omega AntiMag movement features amazing resistance to magnetic fields over 1.5 tesla (15,000 gauss), thanks to the use of non-ferrous materials instead of a conventional protective container inside a watch case. As the ETA Director of R&D, Thierry Conus, explains, real limits of the new technology are still unknown, because the testing equipment is limited to 1.5 tesla.

Omega Anti-Magnetic Watch Movement Press Conference – Dr Thierry Conus
Anti-magnetic watches are a part of the brand’s legacy. In 1957, Omega launched a Railmaster, a watch designed for people working close to powerful electric fields. “OMEGA searched for a different solution to magnetism and has already introduced advantages – a non-magnetic silicon balance spring and an escapement wheel”, said Thierry Conus.

Omega Anti-Magnetic Watch Movement Press Conference