Volcano A volcano was an opening in a planet ' s surface , usually mountain ous , which allowed hot lava , ash and gas es to escape from below the surface . The word was coined by Pompeii an Lobus Caecilius on witnessing Vesuvius ' eruption in 79 . He believed that the " great god Vulcan must [ have been ] so enraged " and described the eruption as " so volcanic " and that it was " like some sort of volcano " . ( TV : " The Fires of Pompeii " ) Volcanoes on Earth . Earth at an early stage of its development had many active volcanoes which constantly erupted for millions of years , resulting in the formation of the planet ' s granite crust . This was observed by the Fourth Doctor , who found the process marvellous , and Sarah Jane Smith , who found it horrible . ( AUDIO : " Exploration Earth " ) The First Doctor , John and Gillian once visited a South Seas island and witnessed a volcanic eruption . ( COMIC : " Guests of King Neptune " ) On 24 August 79 , the Roman city of Pompeii was destroyed in the eruption of the volcano Vesuvius . ( AUDIO : " The Fires of Vulcan " , TV : " The Fires of Pompeii " ) The eruption was set off by the Tenth Doctor and his companion Donna Noble , destroying the Pyrovile s and opening a rift in time for a second . The event was also a fixed point in time and could not be changed . ( TV : " The Fires of Pompeii " ) In 1883 , the Doctor witnessed the eruption of the volcano Krakatoa . ( TV : " Inferno " , " Rose " ) The explosion released at least one captive Xylok to the surface . ( TV : " The Lost Boy " ) In 1984 , the Dominator Haag set up base in an Iceland ic volcano and attempted to acquire Earth ' s core for his fleet , causing an increase in volcanic activity . UNIT soldiers investigated and turning his equipment against him , creating an explosion which destroyed the aliens and causing the volcano to erupt . ( COMIC : " The Fires Down Below " ) In 2011 , Professor Saurian attempted to raise the Earth ' s temperature by causing all the planet ' s volcanoes to erupt at once . The plan was stopped by the Eleventh Doctor , who limited the eruptions to the volcano containing Saurian ' s base . ( COMIC : " Extinction Event " ) In 2018 , Salamander triggered volcanic eruptions in Hungary as part of his plan to take control of Earth . ( TV : " The Enemy of the World " ) In 2167 , the Dalek s ' attempt to mine Earth ' s core resulted in a volcanic eruption in Bedfordshire . ( TV : " The Dalek Invasion of Earth " ) Volcanoes on other worlds . On Dulkis , the Dominator s ' attempt to turn the planet into starship fuel resulted in a volcanic eruption that threatened the Second Doctor ' s TARDIS . ( TV : " The Dominators " ) A massive volcano on Mars created the Olympus Mons crater . ( PROSE : " Transit " ) On Skaro , the invading Monstron s made their base inside an extinct volcano . A Dalek sacrificed its life to set off a volcanic eruption that destroyed the Monstrons . ( COMIC : " The Menace of the Monstrons " ) On one planet , a volcano served as the Extortioner ' s secret base . ( COMIC : " The Extortioner " ) On Spiridon , the city that the Dalek s used as a base was cooled by molten ice from the ice volcanoes . ( TV : " Planet of the Daleks " ) Planets with high levels of volcanic activity included Gehenna , ( PROSE : " Mean Streets " ) Krop Tor , ( TV : " The Impossible Planet " / " The Satan Pit " ) Sarn ( TV : " Planet of Fire " ) and Tigus . ( TV : " The Daleks ' Master Plan " ) An unknown incarnation of the Master ended the Monks ' rule of a planet by throwing their " lynchpin " , a young girl , into a volcano . As Missy , she later told Bill Potts and the Twelfth Doctor of this when they asked about the Monks due to their rule over Earth . ( TV : " The Lie of the Land " ) Hallucination of a volcano . Clara Oswald , after entering a dream like state with a mood patch , believed that she visited a volcano to destroy the TARDIS key s in lava to blackmail the Twelfth Doctor into saving Danny Pink ' s life . ( TV : " Dark Water " )