The Curse of the Black Spot sauntered off to other less interesting stuff," mainly criticising that the little girl's regeneration in "Day of the Moon" was left unresolved. However, Brew "still enjoyed" "The Curse of the Black Spot", reacting positively to the episode's production values and the reveal of the black spots. Nick Setchfield of the science-fiction based magazine "SFX" opined that the high points of the episode were that it was "high on shivery maritime atmosphere," and the Doctor for not being "in instant possession of all the facts, but who reloads his thinking as events unfold." However, Setchfield was critical of the story, claiming
Bright spots on Ceres haze, observed through variation in brightness, still present today, thought to be due to sublimating ice. Ice would not last long in such warm conditions exposed to the vacuum of space, so that would suggest it is being brought to the surface to this day. The brightest cluster of spots ("Spot 5") is located in an crater called Occator, which is located at 19.86° N latitude; 238.85 E longitude. The spot in the center of the crater is named "Cerealia Facula", and the group of spots to the east - "Vinalia Faculae". These names were approved by International Astronomical Union