he Tara Océan Foundation – first public interest foundation in France dedicated to the ocean – has two main missions: exploring the ocean to better understand it and sharing scientific knowledge about the ocean to raise public awareness. For 20 years, the Foundation has been supporting innovative ocean science, in partnership with world-leading research centres to study marine biodiversity, as well as observing and anticipating the impacts of climate change and pollution.

Faced with the urgent need to make the protection of the ocean a common responsibility, the Foundation raises public awareness of the challenges facing the ocean, educates young generations, facilitates international cooperation, and mobilises policymakers.

Thanks to its Special Observer Status at the United Nations, the Foundation actively participates in crucial decisions in favour of the ocean. Studying and protecting the ocean means taking care of the global health of our planet and our future.

Bell & Ross has always designed watches that are built for action. In joining forces with the Tara Océan Foundation, the watchmaker is taking concrete action and boards the schooner Tara. The Diver watch has been adopted by all crew members because of its legibility and efficiency. Regularly confronted with perilous conditions, the crew has to push the limits of the extreme. To cope with the magnitude of their tasks, these experienced scientists and sailors need to be able to count on precise, reliable tools under all circumstances. The challenge resonate with the Bell & Ross team: the BR 03 Diver was designed for this very purpose. “For 30 years, the Maison has been equipping extraordinary pilots and divers whose missions and lives itself depend on their instruments and machines. At its core, Bell & Ross is a supplier for explorers and elite units, with each watch designed to meet precise specifications set by the professional world it will enter. That’s why we felt it was important to mark this joining of forces and celebrate the first year of our partnership with a new piece, the BR 03 Diver Tara”, explains Carlos-A Rosillo, President and Co-Founder of Bell & Ross. Every model from the new BR 03-92 Diver Tara takes part in this commitment: for every watch sold, part of the profits will be donated to the Foundation.

For a perfect symbiosis with the Tara Océan Foundation, Bell & Ross chose to design an instrument watch worthy of the missions undertaken by the scientists on board the schooner Tara. The heart of the Tara Océan Foundation’s mission is very close to that of a Bell & Ross watch. There’s the same requirement for precision. The new BR 03-92 Diver Tara watch matches these specifications. There is no room for the superfluous, and functionality is prioritised. Part of the BR 03 Diver professional diver’s watch collection, this limited edition of 999 pieces is waterproof to a depth of 300 metres. The model features a 42mm matte blue ceramic case and is equipped with a unidirectional rotating ceramic bezel in blue and orange, graduated to 60 minutes as required by professional divers. This efficient timepiece is powered by the BR-CAL 302 self-winding mechanical movement, displaying the hours, minutes, seconds and date.

To ensure the display’s perfect readability whether on land, on board or while diving, the deep blue metal dial features applique indexes and white graduation, with optimal luminescence in the dark thanks to a Super- LumiNova® coating. The seconds hand features an orange tint, making it immediately identifiable and readable. The flexible and comfortable strap closes with a steel pin buckle with blue PVD coating and is made of blue woven rubber lined with an ultra-resistant technical material.

“A key part of our brand’s DNA has always been to equip professionals with tools capable of adjusting to their mission and to push the limits to the extreme, which is why it seemed a natural fit to join forces with the Tara Océan Foundation,” emphasises Carlos-A Rosillo, President and Co-Founder of Bell & Ross. “The watch that started our collaboration with Bell & Ross was the Diver model, designed to be used at sea and even underwater. The Tara teams on board the schooner, and even at the North Pole in the near future, will be required to dive on a regular basis. When you’re underwater, time can be vital information,” echoes Romain Troublé, General Director of the Tara Océan Foundation.

While the independent watchmaking Maison Bell & Ross has always been closely associated with the aeronautical world, the brand has long capitalised on its creativity to design instrument watches for professionals working in all elements, whether fighter pilots, those in special force units, F1 drivers or extraordinary divers. Very early on, Bell & Ross contributed to ocean discoveries by equipping several professionals with cutting-edge instruments. Passionate about the marine world, Bell & Ross has created exceptional tools since its beginnings: launched in 1997, the Hydromax is certified to 11,100 metres, pushing the limits of the quest for depth. And working to the same rigorous standards, in 2007, the watchmaking Maison introduced the BR 02: a professional diving watch that’s water-resistant to 1,000 metres, meeting extreme demands. Finally, in 2017, the BR 03-92 Diver was created: a diver’s watch with an iconic shape, designed for professionals demanding tools with optimal reliability. Now, through this partnership with the Tara Océan Foundation, marine exploration and scientific research professionals will also wear a Bell & Ross Diver on their wrist.

This maritime partnership completes the two other partnerships to cover the three Bell & Ross universes: the sky with La Patrouille, the land with Alpine and finally the sea with the Fondation Tara Océan. Bell & Ross equips these extreme professionals in each of these universes demanding excellence and inevitably precision.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Movement: calibre BR-CAL.302. Automatic mechanical.

Functions: hours, minutes, seconds and date.

Case: 42 mm in width. Matte blue ceramic. Unidirectional rotating ceramic bezel with 60-minute scale.

Dial: blue. Metal applique skeleton Super-LumiNova-filled numerals and indices.

Crystal: sapphire with anti-reflective coating.

Water-resistance: 300 metres.

Strap: woven blue rubber and ultra-resilient orange synthetic fabric.

Buckle: pin. Steel with PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) finish.