Silurian Ark A Silurian Ark was a large starship , roughly as wide as Canada , created by the Silurian civilisation during the final days of their rule . Characteristics . The large , roughly spherically shaped craft was able to hold thousands of crew in hibernation pods and an entire self - contained ecosystem for animals to thrive . Some parts resembled outside planetary environments that were a near perfect replica of an environment , though a keen observer was able to sample the air and detect metallic content therein . Another example of the ship ' s true nature was present in these environments as underneath the soil and sand were metallic plates . Its engines were powered through hydroelectric means with a large ocean that used waves as a form of energy . A computer system allowed easy access to information and included a teleport system to any area of the ship . The control deck served as the command centre for the entire ship and included an automated piloting system that locked the target for the vessel . Piloting of the ship involved parallel pilot compartment s — chairs that required the users to be of the same gene chain . ( TV : " Dinosaurs on a Spaceship " ) The arks also contained workshops for scientific purposes . ( COMIC : " Supremacy of the Cybermen " ) History . This craft ' s creation was dated to the end of the Silurians ' rule of the planet Earth . At the time , they discovered an object that was forecasted to collide with their home - world . The majority of their race entered into suspended animation though some of their kind created a large spaceship designed to hold their people and a large number of dinosaur s . The Ark travelled in space where the preserved dinosaurs managed to thrive except for one species . Whilst in hibernation , the Ark was boarded by Solomon , a pirate who determined its cargo to be of high value that he could sell . After boarding the ship , he had his two robots wake up a few of the Silurians at a time and disposed of them when they refused to give him the dinosaurs . A whole crew of thousands was killed this way . Due to the piloting method of the ship , Solomon was unable to control the ship and it automatically returned to Earth . In 2367 , the Ark ' s path toward Earth prompted the Indian Space Agency to identify it as a threat . Accordingly , the ISA planned to destroy it with a barrage of missiles . In this time , the Eleventh Doctor learnt of the ships existence and was determined to save it . He took Queen Nefertiti , John Riddell , Amy Pond , Rory Williams and , accidentally , Brian Williams to the ship where he encountered Solomon . Being a father and son , Brian and Rory were able to operate the parallel pilot compartments and steer the Ark away from Earth . At the same time , the Doctor placed the Ark ' s signature onto Solomon ' s ship causing the missiles to target it vice the Ark . Solomon was forced to witness his own demise as the missiles crashed into his ship . The Ark and Earth safe , the Doctor and Brian fulfilled the Silurians ' plans , establishing a planetary refuge for the dinosaurs , which they dubbed Siluria . The Ark was presumably abandoned afterwards . ( TV : " Dinosaurs on a Spaceship " ) Numerous Silurian Arks were seen above Trenzalore during the Siege , having travelled there in response to the First Question . They either retreated from the planet or burned in the fighting after the Dalek s broke through the Papal Mainframe ' s force field and plunged Trenzalore into war . ( TV : " The Time of the Doctor " ) Alternate timeline . The Cybermen converted Silurian Arks and used at least one of them to create Cyber - Silurian s . Later the Cyber - Arks were launched to attack the CyberKing controlled by the Tenth Doctor . ( COMIC : " Supremacy of the Cybermen " ) Behind the scenes . According to director Saul Metzstein in THWR 13 , the look of the Silurian Ark was modelled on the car from the television series .