Asteroid
Asteroids were usually located in asteroid belts, (TV: The Invisible Enemy) and fields. (TV: The End of Time) Once an asteroid entered the Earth's atmosphere, it became a meteor. (TV: Detained)
One account identified asteroids as small planets. There were believed to be some 30,000 asteroids revolving around the Sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter, the largest of which was Ceres. The only one visible to the naked eye on Earth was Vesta. (PROSE: Spacewords [+]Loading...["Spacewords (feature)"])
Asteroid impacts[[edit] | [edit source]]
Sufficiently large asteroids could create massive amounts of damage when they hit a planet, causing mass extinctions and societal collapse. Wherever they landed, all the surroundings would be incinerated within seconds. The impact would kick up a cloud of dust which could cover the planet and cause an "Impact Winter" for months or years. Burning debris and acid would happen. Following the "Impact Winter" was the "Ultraviolet Spring", which would cause mutations and cancer. (AUDIO: Blood of the Daleks)
The extinction of the dinosaurs was believed to be caused by an asteroid impact, (TV: Time and the Rani, Fragments) but it was actually caused by a spacecraft. (TV: Earthshock)
Red Rocket Rising was hit by an asteroid after the manipulations by the Daleks. (AUDIO: Blood of the Daleks)
As recounted by K9 Mark 2, the civilisation on the planet Ceres was wiped out by an asteroid, the approach of which they were oblivious to due to the symbiotic, two-class Master/Scribe system, which was created with the substance cerulium. (TV: Sirens of Ceres)
Liveable asteroids[[edit] | [edit source]]
While many asteroids were barren and lifeless, some supported life, either naturally or due to design.
The Sycorax were native to asteroids and fashioned starships out of other, smaller asteroids. (TV: The Christmas Invasion)
The Batmen lived on an asteroid in hyperspace by the 2060s. (COMIC: The Batmen)
A wide variety of buildings and structures were built into asteroids, including the Bi-Al Foundation, (TV: The Invisible Enemy) the Braxiatel Collection, (PROSE: Tears of the Oracle) the Delirium Archive, (TV: The Time of Angels) Demons Run, (TV: A Good Man Goes to War) Lavonia, (AUDIO: Fear of the Daleks) the Shadow Proclamation headquarters (TV: The Stolen Earth) and the Stormlight House. (COMIC: Mortal Beloved) Other asteroids were centres of trade, such as one on which the rare metal Bazoolium was sold. (TV: Army of Ghosts) They generally needed special features to bring the gravity to acceptable levels. (PROSE: Tears of the Oracle)
As the Tenth Doctor recalled, he and Rose Tyler met a "munchkin lady" on an asteroid. (TV: Rise of the Cybermen)
At the end of the universe, the Cyberiad lived in an asteroid, one which had been moulded into the likeness of a Cyber-helmet. Following his exile, Rassilon visited this asteroid to propose an alliance, being welcomed and incorporated into the Cyberiad as the Cyber-President. (COMIC: Supremacy of the Cybermen)
Vakrass, last of the Death Lords, lived on the asteroid Primeline-275, the final state of the lost Gallifreyan moon Botoya following the Doctor turning its temporal fields back on itself. (AUDIO: The End of the Beginning)
Usage of asteroids[[edit] | [edit source]]
The Ice Warriors dropped an asteroid on Paris in 2086; this was the beginning of the Thousand Day War. (PROSE: GodEngine, Beige Planet Mars)
The Daleks disguised their saucers as asteroids to fool their opponents upon their approach. (COMIC: The Only Good Dalek)
The Rani intended to use an asteroid made of strange matter to create a Time Manipulator. (TV: Time and the Rani)
The Hesperus, a salvage ship operated by the Vinvocci, trawled through asteroid fields for junk. For protection purposes, it was equipped with asteroid lasers. (TV: The End of Time)
A prisoner was trapped in prisons that looked like asteroids. (TV: Detained)
Other references[[edit] | [edit source]]
During the Eternals' race for Enlightenment, some of their ships went through an asteroid storm. (TV: Enlightenment)
Upon taking Rose Tyler to see the Earth's destruction in the year five billion, the Ninth Doctor mentioned asteroids as one of the things humanity thought would cause their extinction. (TV: The End of the World)
Searching for a Chula ambulance which crashed to London, the Ninth Doctor used his psychic paper to pose as a Doctor John Smith from the Ministry of Asteroids. (TV: The Empty Child)
While on their honeymoon, Amy Pond and Rory Williams visited a planet and an asteroid who were also on their honeymoon. (TV: Death of the Doctor, PROSE: The Night After Hallowe'en)
On By the Light of the Asteroid the characters lived on an asteroid. (TV: Voyage of the Damned)
Chasm Forge was built above an asteroid, which it also mined resources from. (TV: Oxygen)
Asteroid 284996 was named Rosaparks in honour of civil rights activist Rosa Parks. The Thirteenth Doctor took her companions to see the asteroid to show them Parks' lasting impact on the universe. (TV: Rosa)
In Arcadia's system, the asteroids were lumped together in the shapes of grotesque and contorted faces by the Spinward Corporation. (PROSE: Deceit)
