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The Moon, also known as Luna, was the largest natural satellite of the planet Earth. Humans most often used the definite article the to refer to the object, despite the fact that it was obvious for millennia of human existence that it was not the only moon in the Solar System. For instance, when the well-educated human, Martha Jones, travelled to the satellite in the 21st century, she still exclaimed, "I'm on the Moon!" Indeed, the Tenth Doctor, perhaps kowtowing to human biases, also called it "the Moon", despite having been on more than a few moons in his life. News outlets in London likewise uniformly used the term "the Moon", suggesting that this was the term the average Briton used, as well. (DW: Smith and Jones)
History
Origins and Earliest History
The Moon originated outside of the Sol system; it was originally the moon of the Cthalctose homeworld around 60 million years BCE. At that time it housed the Genesis of Cthalctose which was designed to terraform alien worlds (such as, in the future, Earth) to an environment capable of supporting their species. (NA: Eternity Weeps)
Later Pre-History
The Silurians went into hibernation because of the appearance of a "small planet" near Earth, the Silurian home planet at that time, which they believed would devastate their world. (DW: Doctor Who and the Silurians)
- The Third Doctor concluded that this referred to the Moon.
Human Era
19th century
In 1878, as Queen Victoria watched, three British spacecraft - the Cygnus, the Draco and the Lynx - were launched in secret from rural Scotland. The subsequent expedition to the dark side of the moon resulted in the discovery of a lunar park erected by an unknown alien civilisation for hunting purposes, but during the expedition's efforts to rescue their missing commander- aided by the Fifth Doctor, Turlough and (secretly) Kamelion- the park was destroyed, its last surviving inhabitants being the ruthless Vrall, who tricked the humans into bringing them to Earth only to subsequently be destroyed by the Doctor and his companions using weapons salvaged from the park. (PDA: Imperial Moon)
20th century
Early 20th century
Some time prior to 2001 there was a base on the Moon at Tycho crater. Movements suggesting active life forms further north in the Eratosthenes crater were spotted as early as 1924. (WEB: visittorchwood.co.uk)
The Dalek Flying Saucer was hidden on the dark side of the moon in 1941. (DW: Victory of the Daleks)
Circa 1959, an alien group landed on the Moon and sent a transmission to Earth. They requested a meeting with the humans so they could share technology. The American government intercepted the transmission and started NASA's moon project to meet them. (WC: Blue Moon)
The Apollo 11 landing
- See separate article.
According to most historical accounts, humans officially first set foot on the moon on 20th July 1969.
Contradicting this, one account shows three human astronauts landing on the Moon in the year 1970, apparently for the first time. As well as spotting the Doctor's TARDIS, they also got in some trouble. (TVC: Moon Landing)
At some point after 1969, the Tenth Doctor intended to take Rose Tyler to the Moon, making her unofficially the first human female to set foot there, but this plan went awry. (NSA: I am a Dalek)
According to one account, Moon landings became routine in a fairly short while. (DWA: Soldiers from Zolta)
Later 20th century
By the late 20th century, the Cybermen had established a base on the Dark Side of the Moon. The base served as the staging area for a fleet poised to invade Earth. It also could fire missiles at approaching craft (such as the Doctor's TARDIS which briefly materialised in space nearby). (DW: The Invasion)
The base (or another one) still existed in 1985 (DW: Attack of the Cybermen) and in 1988, the Cyber-Fleet orbited the Moon and waited for the Cyber-Leader, already on Earth, to acquire the Nemesis so that the Fleet could land, conquer Earth and convert the planet into New Mondas. The Nemesis, sent to rendezvous with the Fleet, exploded and destroyed the entire fleet. (DW: Silver Nemesis)
In the 1970s, the Daleks established a base on the Moon and contacted Professor Pillbright, offering him use of their disintegrator weapon in exchange for his servitude. The Third Doctor went to the Moon and destroyed their base with a neutron bomb. (TVC: The Disintegrator)
In 1992, the Timewyrm created a replica of Victorian-era Cheldon Bonniface on the Moon in order to trap the Seventh Doctor. (NA: Timewyrm: Revelation)
21st century
2000s
In the 21st century, the Moon was considered neutral ground under Galactic Law, meaning that if law-enforcement agents such as the Judoon, who would have broken Galactic Law to conduct their affairs on Earth, had free reign to do so on its satellite.
Accordingly, the Royal Hope Hospital was transported from London to the Moon, through the use of an H2O Scoop, by Judoon during their search for a Plasmavore murderer. (DW: Smith and Jones)
In 2008 the Moon nearly collided into the Earth as part of Mr Smith's plan to destroy Earth using Luke Smith, whose natural power of telekinesis a device named MITRE had amplified. Earth's weather was affected worldwide. However, with Mr Smith "reprogrammed" by a computer virus, Mr Smith had Luke reposition the Moon back into its original orbit. (SJA: The Lost Boy)
The following year, in 2009, Earth was relocated to the Medusa Cascade by the Daleks; the Moon, however, remained behind, though it is not known how it maintained its position until Earth was returned to its original location. (DW: The Stolen Earth / Journey's End)
Human Colonization of the Moon
At some point, a group of scientists had established a quantum tunnel linking Base Diana, a secret military base on the moon with part of the Nevada Desert. This base was being used to carry out mind experiments on dangerous criminals. (NSA: Apollo 23)
By 2010, there was a Moonbase operated by the Unified Intelligence Taskforce. Dr. Shaw was stationed here at the time. (SJA: Death of the Doctor)
By 2015, when the Fifth Doctor and Turlough visited it, humans had established Lunar Village One. Here they stopped a pair of Dryrth criminals looking for treasure left on the Moon by their people. (DWM: The Lunar Strangers)
In 2050 the tenth German moon mission took place. (DW: The Waters of Mars)
Some time before the Bowie Base One mission in 2058 the notable space pioneer Adelaide Brooke became the second female Briton to land on the Moon. (DW: The Waters of Mars)
In 2070, when Cybermen landed there, a Moonbase housed the Gravitron, a machine that regulated Earth's weather. (DW: The Moonbase) At another time, another base function as a T-Mat relay, co-ordinating T-Mat on Earth. A T-Mat link enabled a person to travel from Earth to the Moon in seconds, until a group of Ice Warriors decided to sabotage the relay. (DW: The Seeds of Death).
From the 2160s to the late 2190s, many humans were left on the moon without access to the Earth, thanks to the 22nd century Dalek invasion of Earth. Susan Campbell and, to a lesser extent, her son Alex were a part of several official public functions involving the return of the stranded colonists. (CC: Quinnis)
Later history
By 2540, it served as a penal colony for dissidents against the war between Earth's empire and the Draconians. (DW: Frontier in Space)
Circa the 30th century, Earth scientists were digging for resources on the moon as Earth had begun to run out. (TDL: The Dust of Ages)
Destruction of the Moon
Circa the 53rd century, the Threshold had established Wormwood, a replica of a late 19th century American frontier town on the Moon as well as the superweapon known as the Eye of Disharmony. When the Eighth Doctor's companions Izzy Sinclair and Feyde sabotaged the Eye of Disharmony, the resulting feedback destroyed the Moon. (DWM: Wormwood)
Other Moons
In the time of the Fourth Great and Bountiful Human Empire, the Earth had five moons. A penal colony still existed at this time. (DW: The Long Game, Bad Wolf)
Biological Effects
Werewolves, such as the Host, were transformed from their human form into their wolf form whenever they came under the moonlight. The Tenth Doctor, through a telescope at Torchwood House, concentrated moonlight into a laser-like beam which killed the Host, saving Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. (DW: Tooth and Claw)
Real world
In our world, scientific consensus is that the Moon likely formed due to an impact between Earth and another celestial body late in the formation of the Solar System.
Recently, ice deposits have been found by NASA probes on the Moon. Before now, humans had believed there was never water on the Moon.
