A2_4 'It appears to have gone into orbit, sir'

Abstract

In this article we calculated the mass and acceleration due to gravity of a planetoid, featured in an episode of the BBC series `Red Dwarf', if a golf ball is hit into orbit. We then compared that result to the portrayal of the crew's movement around the planetoid's surface. We found that the mass of the planetoid is 1.4 x 10⁴% of the mass of the Earth and its acceleration due to gravity is 0.05 m s^-2.