Pete Conrad

prabestmake February 07, 2021

Update: I am still working on this story as it unfolds and once it is done, I will remove this notice.

Apollo 12 Astronaut

Pete Conrad

1970 Rolex Day-Date

They say when it rains it pours, and Nick Gould and I have been on a tear recently discovering more NASA Astronauts wearing Rolex watches. Yesterday I ran a story on how I recently discovered that Michael Collins wore a yellow gold Rolex Day-Date.

The image below shows Charles 'Pete' Conrad Jr (foreground) command pilot and Richard F. Gordon., Jr, pilot in the Gemini 11 spacecraft in the white room atop Pad 19 awaiting the final minutes of the pre-launch countdown on September 12, 1966. Liftoff was at 9:42 a.m. (EST).

The next image, seen below shows Charles 'Pete' Conrad on September 15, 1966 exiting the Gemini 11 spacecraft minutes after splashdown.

Pete Conrad took the photo below on the moon during Apollo 12 and we see him reflected on Apollo 12 Astronaut Alan L. Bean's mirrored spacesuit mask. Bean is holding a container with lunar soil he collected during the EVA on the moon.

At the time, the Apollo 12 astronauts leased matching Riverside Gold Stingray Corvettes with black winds and red, white and blue logos above the gills. Each astronaut also had their initials painted on the car.

Today's story showcases another NASA Apollo Astronaut wearing a yellow gold Rolex Day-Date, and this time it's Pete Conrad from Apollo 12, and it was discovered by Nick Gould!! The first photo below is where Nick ID'd the Rolex Day-Date on Pete Conrad's wrist, almost hiding in plain sight. This is a deeply profound image as it shows Apollo 12's Pete Conrad with Buzz Aldrin (Apollo 11) and Neil Armstrong (Apollo 11) in Apollo James Lovell of Apollo 13's living room with James Lovell's wife, 2 daughters and mother as they watch the Apollo 13 fiasco unveiling live.

In this next photo we see Pete Conrad's official NASA portrait taken in 1971 and notice his Rolex Day-Date peaking out under his cuff.

This next photo from the NASA Archives says:

S73-24303 (May 1973) --- These three astronauts have been named by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as the prime crew of the first manned Skylab mission. They are, left to right, Joseph P. Kerwin, science pilot; Charles Conrad Jr., commander; and Paul J. Weitz, pilot. Skylab is a three-part program consisting of one 28-day and two 56-day manned visits spanning an eight-month period. One day prior to the launch of this crew, the unmanned Skylab space station cluster will be launched and placed in Earth orbit. The first manned mission will last up to 28 days.

In these next photos we see Pete Conrad who was a crew member on Skylab 2, which was the first Skylab team to go to space and notice he is wearing his yellow gold Rolex Day-Date which matches his Skylab uniform. This photo was taken during Skylab 2 training in February of 1972.