Asteroid M

Utopia is the name of the separatist mutant homeland created by the X-Men from the remains of Asteroid M which is the name of several fictional settings, each an asteroid converted by the mutant Magneto into his home/orbiting base, in the Marvel Comics Universe. Asteroid M was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, in X-Men #5 (May 1964).

History

Asteroid M has been destroyed and reconstructed by the Master of Magnetism many times since it was first introduced. Each iteration has had several internal levels, including an observation deck, hangar bays and medical facilities. The various facilities have had technology that keep the asteroid concealed from standard detection technology. They have all been positioned in a low geosynchronous orbit. Each asteroid was relatively small yet sufficiently large that it could not be shot down, or destroyed externally, without the risk of massive devastation to Earth.

First version

Magneto completes construction on Asteroid M just before recruiting his children, Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch into his group, the Brotherhood of Mutants, as seen in X-Men, vol. 2 #-1 (July 1997). This first version is destroyed in a battle with the original team of X-Men in X-Men #5 (May 1964) after the Brotherhood kidnapped the Angel and held him prisoner there. The X-Men got there using a rocket that was being used to transport the Toad. This version has a device on it that can increase Magneto's magnetic powers.