Asteroid Shiba memecoin jumped after SpaceX listed a plush toy tied to the Polaris Dawn zero-gravity indicator designed by Liv Perrotto.
The price of the Ethereum-based memecoin soared more than 120% before pulling back, shortly after SpaceX, Elon Musk’s rocket company, added an Asteroid plush toy with the same name to its online store.
Asteroid Shiba, an Ethereum-based memecoin, rallied after the SpaceX Store page showed a $35 “SPACEX ASTEROID PLUSH” tied to the private Polaris Dawn mission.
CoinGecko data shows ASTEROID trading at around $0.0001 as of press time, up about 86% on the day, with the memecoin’s market capitalization also more than doubling during the same period.
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SpaceX Plush Revives Memecoin Trade
The price jump came after a SpaceX Store page for the “SPACEX ASTEROID PLUSH” showed up, pricing the toy at $35. The page says the toy is “coming soon” and that SpaceX expects “Asteroid landing in September.” The page reads:
“Asteroid the Shiba, with the fluffiest of ears, is no ordinary pup – he’s a space pioneer! He ventures the cosmos wagging his tail with delight, then returns to Earth for snuggles at night.”
SpaceX also says the toy was designed by Liv P, an honorary member of the Polaris Dawn team.
Liv Perrotto, a teen designer who passed away in January at age 15 after a years-long battle with cancer, created Asteroid for Polaris Dawn, the private SpaceX mission that completed the first commercial spacewalk in 2024.
The plush served as the mission’s zero-gravity indicator, a small object that floats inside a spacecraft once it reaches microgravity.
SpaceX Story Meets Memecoin Volatility
The memecoin rally appears tied to the same viral Asteroid plush story, though there’s no indication that Asteroid Shiba is anyhow affiliated with SpaceX, the SpaceX toy or Perrotto’s family.
Space.com reported in 2024 that Asteroid was inspired by Elon Musk’s Shiba Inu, Floki, and that SpaceX sold copies of the toy with proceeds benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at Liv’s request.
After Liv passed away in January, her mother, Rebecca Perrotto, shared eight questions Liv had written for Musk. One asked whether Asteroid could become SpaceX’s mascot.
Musk later replied to the questions on X, ending with “Ok 😀” to the mascot request.
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