IWC Schaffhausen presents the new Portugieser Yacht Club. Novel nautical functions and elegant case proportions together with high robustness and water-resistance make this nautical sports watch the perfect companion on deck and ashore. The Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide is the first model to feature IWC’s newly developed tide indication. The Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph will be available in three versions.
Since 2010, the Portugieser Yacht Club has brought a sporting note to the family. As a nautical sports watch, it combines timeless elegance with ruggedness and high water-resistance. These characteristics make the Yacht Club an extremely versatile watch that cuts a fine figure both on water and land. Two eye-catching features in the new models are the filigree bezel and flat casing ring. Together, they lend the case, with its 44-millimetre diameter, particularly elegant proportions.
IWC Portugieser Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide
The Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide (Ref. 344001) is the first watch from IWC to sport the newly developed tide indication. A subdial at 6 o’clock indicates the expected times for the next high and low tide. The double moon phase display at 12 o’clock has been enhanced to show spring and neap tides and thus provides information about the strength of the current tides. Spring tides, which bring particularly high water, occur at full moon and new moon.
Ref. IW344001:
18-carat 5N gold case, blue dial, gold-plated hands, 18-carat gold appliques, blue rubber strap with textile inlay.
The module for the double moon phase display and the tide display is driven by the IWC-manufactured 82835 calibre. This robust automatic movement features a Pellaton winding fitted with ceramic components and offers a power reserve of 60 hours. It can be viewed through the transparent sapphire-glass back.
FEATURES
Mechanical movement – Pellaton automatic winding system – perpetual moon phase for the northern and southern hemispheres – display for spring tide or neap tide – tide indicating with the time of the next high or low tide – date display – see-through sapphire glass back
MOVEMENT
IWC manufacture calibre 82835
Frequency 28,800 vph/4 Hz
Jewels 22
Power reserve 60 h
Winding Automatic
WATCH
Materials 18-carat 5N gold case, blue dial, gold-plated hands, 18-carat gold appliques, blue rubber strap with textile inlay
Glass Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Water-resistant 3 bar
Diameter 44.6 mm
Height 14.4 mm
Price: 34.800 €
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph
IWC has also launched the 3rd generation of the Portugieser Yacht Club Chronograph (Ref. 3907). Featuring a 44 mm case this nautical sports chronograph combines timeless elegance with high robustness and a water-resistance of 6 bar. All three models offer highly ergonomic metal bracelets in either stainless steel or steel and 18-carat 5N gold.
Ticking away inside these watches is the IWCmanufactured 89361 calibre. It displays the stopped hours and minutes in a single totaliser at 12 o’clock. Thanks to its flyback function, the stopwatch hands can be returned to zero simply by pressing the reset button, and a new timing sequence starts immediately. The automatic winding builds up a power reserve of 68 hours. The movement can be viewed through the transparent case back.
Ref. IW390701:
Stainless steel case, blue dial, rhodium-plated hands and appliques, stainless steel bracelet.
Ref. IW390702:
Stainless steel case, silver-plated dial, blue hands and appliques, stainless steel bracelet.
Ref. IW390703:
Stainless steel case, silver-plated dial, gold-plated hands and 18-carat 5N gold appliques, bracelet made of 18-carat 5N gold and stainless steel.
FEATURES
Mechanical movement – stopwatch function with hours, minutes and seconds – hour and minute counters combined in a totaliser at 12 o’clock – flyback function – date display – small hacking seconds – screw-in crown – see-through sapphire glass back
MOVEMENT
IWC manufacture calibre 89361
Frequency 28,800 vph/4 Hz
Jewels 38
Power reserve 68 h
Winding Automatic
WATCH
Materials
Ref. IW390701: Stainless steel case, blue dial, rhodium-plated hands and appliques, stainless steel bracelet – 12.600 €
Ref. IW390702: Stainless steel case, silver-plated dial, blue hands and appliques, stainless steel bracelet – 12.600 €
Ref. IW390703: Stainless steel case, silver-plated dial, gold-plated hands and 18-carat 5N gold appliques, 18-carat 5N gold and stainless steel bracelet – 19.100 €
Glass Sapphire, convex, antireflective coating on both sides
Water-resistant 6 bar
Diameter 44.6 mm
Height 14.4 mm
Time and tide wait for no man
But now, at least, you can have them both on your wrist. The tides are a timelessly fascinating spectacle: twice a day, the waves retreat from the shore before inexorably rising again. The Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide features a tide display that keeps you informed about the next high water. It is possible thanks to a special wheel train that translates the rhythm of the hours into the constantly shifting chronological sequence of high and low water.
The rhythm of the tides is as old as the Earth itself. As the tide ebbs, water retreats from the coast until it reaches low tide. At that point, the sea reverts to a flood tide until it reaches high water. In the Wadden Sea, an area of wetlands between Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands, the constant rhythm of the tides has created a level of biological diversity among the highest on Earth. But ebb and flow are also of vital importance for shipping. When sailing close to the coast, a skipper must keep his eye on tide tables to avoid running aground. This is the reason why the study of tides is an integral part of any nautical training.
The Moon attracts water, while the rotation of the Earth disperses it
The Greek mariner Pytheas recognized the link between this natural phenomenon and the moon as early as the fourth century BCE. It is particularly noticeable at the coasts that the moon visible at high tide is almost at the same place in the sky again at the next but one high tide. In 1609, the German astronomer Johannes Keppler first outlined a theory according to which the moon attracts the water in the oceans and thus causes the tides.
Indeed, the tides are caused by a complex interplay of gravitational and centrifugal forces between the Earth, the moon and the sun. On the side of the Earth facing the moon, the moon’s gravitational pull attracts the water, creating a bulge that causes the tides. But a similar bulge of water also forms on the side of the Earth facing away from the moon. This is caused by the centrifugal forces that arise due to the rotation of the Earth: Rather like the clothes in a spin dryer, the masses of water are pushed outwards by these centrifugal forces.
The time of high tide shifts continuously
The Earth rotates on its own axis once every 24 hours and, within that period, moves under the two bulges of high tide and two areas of ebb tide. For human beings, who do not notice the rotation of the Earth, this gives the impression that the water is receding from the coasts and then rising again. But why does high tide occur at a different time each day? During the time it takes the Earth to complete a rotation, the moon progresses a little bit further. So, on Earth it takes 24 hours and 48 minutes for the moon to be in the same position. The time between two high tides, then, is always exactly 12 hours and 24 minutes. If, for example, it is high tide at midnight, the next ones will occur at 12.24 and 0.48, respectively.
A reducing gear tracks the tides
The tide display on the Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide now shows the slightly shifting times for high tide on the dial. During the 12 hours and 24 minutes between two high tides, the display rotates by around 24 minutes on the 12-hour scale. The energy required to turn it is channelled by the basic movement’s hour pinion. The challenge facing the designers was to convert the rapid hourly rhythm into the much more leisurely rotation of the tidal disc. A reducing gear comprising three precisely calculated cogs slows the rotation to the point where the tidal disc rotates around its axis once in exactly 14.76 days. The tidal display module is integrated into the 82835 calibre and contains just 49 individual parts.
In 100 years, the display will be just 10 minutes out
Because the display rotates continuously, it always shows the approximate time of the next high tide. If the arrow points to 12 o’clock at 10 o’clock in the morning, the next high tide will be a little later than 12 o’clock because, in the next two hours, the tidal disc will also move a little further. On the opposite side you can also read the approximate time for the next low tide. The exact times for high and low tide depend on the longitude. As a result, the display needs to be calibrated once using the tide tables for a specific location, such as New York, Lisbon or Sydney. According to this, the deviation is theoretically only 10 minutes in 100 years. The display works reliably on all coasts with two equally strong high and low tides per day.
The moon phase display also shows spring and neap tides
Another special feature of the Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide is the double moon phase display. It has been extended to include a special inscription and also provides information about the strength of the current tides. At full and new moon, the Earth, moon and sun are in a direct line. In this constellation, the tidal forces are cumulative and generate a spring tide – a particularly strong high tide. At half-moon, however, the sun and moon are at right angles to each other. The result of this is a weaker high tide, or “neap tide”. Exactly how high the water rises depends on the geographical location and the exact physical nature of the coast. While the tidal swell on the open sea is only about 30 centimetres, the sea level during high tide rises by up to 20 metres in the Canadian Bay of Fundy. So, anyone in charge of a boat would be well advised to take a look at the dial of their Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide.
IWC Portugieser Yacht Club Moon & Tide and Chronograph Gallery
