The History of The Citizen Aqualand, The Icon Celebrating 40 Years

Conventional dive watches have by no means waned in recognition, regardless of trendy diving computer systems and even sensible watches pushing them into technical obsolescence. The daybreak of early divers within the Nineteen Fifties is outlined by two manufacturers and two watches – the Rolex Submariner and the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. Cutting-edge on the time and in a position to face up to depths of 100 metres (91 metres or 50 fathoms for Blancpain), whereas a rotating diver’s bezel coordinated with the minute hand to trace elapsed time underwater. For critical divers, diving computer systems now dominate, and it began with the Orca Edge within the early Eighties as the primary sensible (and reasonably priced) commercially out there possibility. In 1985, nevertheless, the Citizen Aqualand grew to become the primary quartz watch to characteristic an digital digital depth gauge, including important expertise/performance to the normal analogue setup. Now, 40 years on, this Citizen continues to be a beloved wrist companion for divers the world over. All of the extra motive to dive into the historical past of the Citizen Aqualand.

SCUBA Diving

Scuba diving (Self-Contained Underwater Respiratory Equipment) necessitated using dive watches to trace out there air underwater. It adopted the same and pioneering Aqua-Lung developed by Jacques Cousteau and Émile Gagnan in 1942, and have become widespread within the Nineteen Fifties. Dive watches wanted to face up to water depths as much as and over 100 metres to accommodate the rising exercise, though leisure diving usually stopped at 40 metres. The scuba diving depth file is 332.35 meters, set in 2014, which required 13 hours of ascent and decompression after only a 15-minute dive. That type of depth is in any other case reserved for saturation divers utilising specialised underwater chambers. All of it highlights the necessity to monitor depth together with air time, as solely 10 metres creates sufficient strain to trigger decompression illness.

After descending under 9 metres, nitrogen can dissolve within the bloodstream, and if a diver then ascends too shortly, nitrogen bubbles will type within the blood and surrounding tissue. Referred to as the bends (as victims usually bend over from joint ache), it’s doubtlessly very harmful and even life-threatening, inflicting something from musculoskeletal ache to seizures and paralysis. The digital depth gauge on Citizen’s 1985 Aqualand offered correct depth readings coupled with the familiarity of a standard dive watch to trace air time, and it was a real recreation changer. Previous to this, a diver would usually put on a standard dive watch and a cumbersome (and costly) depth gauge individually.

Jacques-Yves Cousteau

Jean Reno as Enzo Molinari sporting a Citizen Aqualand in Le Grand Bleu by Luc Besson

No-Decompression Tables and Limits

These tables (and no dec limits) present leisure divers with the utmost time they’ll keep at a sure depth with no need decompression stops throughout an ascent to forestall the bends. They had been created based mostly on scientific analysis that decided how briskly nitrogen dissolved into the bloodstream at varied depths after which subsequently launched as a gasoline. The Citizen Aqualand with its digital depth gauge allowed divers to precisely plan dives in keeping with the above dive tables with “no deco limits” clearly printed on the rubber watch straps to maintain dives inside secure limits.

Citizen Aqualand, Ref. C0023: 1985

In 1985, Citizen efficiently built-in an correct and reasonably priced digital digital depth gauge with an analogue quartz watch, creating the Aqualand, ref. C0023. Prior makes an attempt to merge dive watches and depth gauges met with various levels of success. All-mechanical fashions from manufacturers like Favre-Leuba and Nivada had been advanced and maintenance-intensive, and accuracy was questionable.

Aquadive’s now legendary Time-Depth 50 took an electromechanical strategy, utilizing an digital motion and Bourdon Tube that moved a dial hand as strain elevated, however general reliability wasn’t considerably improved. A number of main manufacturers nonetheless produce mechanical depth gauge watches right this moment, like Blancpain and IWC, however arguably extra for a technical presentation than real-world usability.

Calibre C020 and C022

Calibre C020 supplied a digital LCD display on the prime of the Aqualand’s in any other case analogue dial, offering repeatedly up to date and logged depth info, so depths and occasions may very well be reviewed after the dive. Calibre C022 changed it in 1988, however precise technical modifications are unknown, and it was more likely to deal with a possible downside/shortcoming.

The aforementioned Orca Edge diving laptop from 1983 and Suunto’s laptop from 1986 (amongst others) supplied extra performance – repeatedly up to date no-decompression occasions, depth limits, ascent info and decompression stops with a myriad of alarms alongside the way in which – however many divers on the time needed to retain the acquainted analog dive watch expertise whereas additionally benefiting from digital depth expertise. Citizen’s Aqualand was the proper center floor between conventional divers and newer computer systems till the latter inevitably dominated the diving scene.

Depth Gauge and Matte Metal Case

The Aqualand depth gauge itself was a sizeable, asymmetrical extension of the left facet of the matte metal case (at 9 o’clock). It used a water strain sensor to supply correct depth measurements right down to 80 metres (with a most 3% deviation). The digital show not solely relayed real-time depth info but in addition saved diving logs with the time and date, whereas an alarm sounded when predetermined depth and closing dates had been reached. There have been additionally digital chronograph and alarm features, which had been frequent for digital quartz watches. The analogue a part of the Aqualand included a unidirectional rotating diver’s bezel and outsized palms and indices with lume inside a 200-metre waterproof case. The screw-down time setting crown sat at 4 o’clock, whereas further push buttons managed the digital show.

The watch was inevitably giant with the depth sensor pushing that case measurement to 50mm (round 44mm measured from 2 to eight o’clock). Lug width was huge at 24mm, and a (notoriously stiff) black rubber strap got here commonplace, once more with very important no deco limits printed on it. A wavy part on the prime did assist with flexibility. Ref. C0023 was produced into the Nineteen Nineties with or with out gold accents (C022 or C033, respectively), together with a restricted black PVD-coated titanium mannequin (C029) with gold accents that was seen within the film Le Grand Bleu on the wrist of Jean Reno. If there was a design flaw, it was the comparatively poor battery life, with three batteries used concurrently, and consumer substitute was comparatively troublesome. The case again was secured with six screws (with a finicky seal).

Ref. JP2000 and Calibre C520: 1992 – Current Day

The following mannequin was nigh equivalent to the unique aesthetically, with some technical enhancements and new ones are nonetheless out there right this moment (reminiscent of ref. JP2000-08E with the traditional black dial). From 1996, the case again was modified to a screw down design from the six particular person screws on the unique, whereas three batteries had been lowered to at least one. The extra environment friendly C520 calibre introduced further alarms for depth and speedy ascent warnings, together with extra reminiscence for logged dives – as much as 4 full dives. It additionally up to date the calendar to succeed in the yr 2099. Depths had been once more measured to 80 metres, and diving time may very well be tracked to 400 minutes. Like the unique, the digital show routinely switched from time to depth info when submerged in water, though this may be performed with a protracted press of the decrease left button.

New fashions discovered right this moment are reasonably priced (beneath USD 400 through many on-line retailers) and retain the enduring design of the 1985 authentic. If it ain’t broke, as they are saying. It’s now a part of the Promaster line launched in 1989 that expanded to air and land watches (air, land and sea), so Promaster Aqualand JP2000-08E is the present designation. Utilizing the watch hasn’t modified over the many years, so it’s as acquainted now because it was within the early Nineteen Nineties. The button on the highest proper toggles by commonplace features on the digital show, reminiscent of time, date and day, whereas the underside left button operates the chronograph and alarm. Holding the underside left button down modifications the setting to diver mode. When the battery is low, the analogue seconds hand will advance as soon as each two seconds. The Aqualand was even formally issued to the Royal Australian Navy Clearance Divers into the Nineteen Nineties.

Ref. JP-1010, AL-0000 and Many Extra

Diversified designs emerged within the years following ref. JP2000 with completely different aesthetics and depth gauge designs, however the identical general performance. For instance, ref. AL-0000-04E had a broadly notched metal diver’s bezel, a extra compact depth gauge design and an analogue depth studying through a dial hand (no LCD display). Ref. BN2029-01E, a present Promaster Aqualand mannequin, has an much more radical design with no LCD display, whereas ref. JP-1010 takes the other strategy with twin LCD screens, prime and backside.

Performance isn’t considerably improved with the latter, however you may reap the benefits of the additional display actual property by having time on the prime and date on the backside, twin time zones and so forth. There have been many dial colors and variations among the many smorgasbord of references, together with full lume dials. As talked about, the traditional design stays out there in lots of areas and, after all, on-line (ref. JP2000-08E), whereas different dial colors are additionally out there. Most discontinued fashions will be discovered on the pre-owned market with a little bit of analysis.

Closing Ideas

Though reasonably priced and a quartz watch, the Citizen Aqualand C0023 and subsequent JP2000 (and the numerous variants) are among the many most vital dive watches ever produced. They masterfully mix very important diving info into an correct, dependable and wearable piece that features depth, dive occasions and warning alarms for unsafe or sudden circumstances, whereas additionally storing this info for later assessment. Though the Aqualand initially bridged a spot between pure analog dive watches and trendy diving computer systems, it’s defied obsolescence and stays an important software that divers at nearly any expertise stage depend on right this moment.

Nobody would argue that watches just like the Rolex Submariner or Seiko Tuna are iconic, however the Aqualand quietly sits on the prime with multi-dimensional performance and an aesthetic that’s immediately recognisable. Maybe a little bit of perform over type in comparison with slicker designs, nevertheless it’s a diving software not like something that got here earlier than it and even most that exist right this moment. Purists could scoff at a quartz motion, however there’s no denying the technological benefit that the C520 calibre continues to supply after greater than three many years. And with an general accuracy of +/-20 seconds per 30 days, it surpasses something a mechanical motion can obtain.

Collectability

Nearly each mannequin since 1985 is offered on the pre-owned market at (normally) attainable costs. An authentic Eighties-era Aqualand C0023 will be discovered for round USD 1,200 in pristine situation, whereas these from 1985 are sometimes extra. Most are in any other case south of USD 1,000, however early black PVD/titanium C029 fashions can attain effectively over USD 2,500.

The excellent news is that almost all had been produced in giant numbers that maintain costs low, and even new JP2000 fashions will be had for lower than USD 400 and provide the identical look and expertise as early Nineteen Nineties counterparts. Apart from very early fashions and rarities, I wouldn’t contemplate this a extremely collectable collection. That, nevertheless, is an effective factor as there’s nothing flawed with an reasonably priced icon. A “blue collar” diving legend that does it finest.

For extra info on Citizen and its legendary Aqualand, please go to CitizenWatch.com.