Should I map the planet surfaces?

[Ostoia]

I started exploring and then realized that mapping planets is a thing. Is it worth doing it or just scanning the planets enough to get a good payout, also do only planets that show locations in system scan can actually be mapped or do most planets actually have points of interest?

[JW62]

mapping is money

[Ostoia]

Originally posted by JW62:

mapping is money

How much money?

[Shadowdrake]

Originally posted by Ostoia:

Originally posted by JW62:

mapping is money

How much money?

about double-triple, iirc

[Ostoia]

Originally posted by Shadowdrake:

Originally posted by Ostoia:

How much money?

about double-triple, iirc

From every planet or just the ones with points of interest?

[DuDun]

AS you would expect, only landable (non atmospheric planets) have poi. Altho you can map all of them.

The Point of Interest are a lil bit... ~underwhelming. If the planet has them, the game will read as something like "geological poi" (which is good) or something like that. But it doesn't update to what kind of object you find after you use the special/sample scanner (which is bad). It will update your codex, but the planet on your windshield will still give it a generic 'geological spot'.

Let's say it's a geyser. after mapping it will read as geological formation (which includes all of them), but after coming upclose and scanning the geyser, the planet's mapping will still read as geological formation.

[primobrainlet]

I go by the rule of thumb of:
Point of interest that isnt volcanism? Map it ASAP
Metal rich planet or above? Map it
Rocky body or below? Nope
Metal rich or above but over 100,000 ly away? Nope

[Dolphin Bottlenose]

Mapping is not bad, and the money can quickly make a system worth a million.

It's not hard, too. I usually map with 1-2 spare probes left for the efficiency bonus. But don't pay attention to that bonus - it's only 1000 Cr extra.

And yes, you can find some interesting points of interest there. I found some biological ones in a nebulae - something like howling cones.

[titanopteryx]

Actually I occasionally encounter systems with all the planets discovered but some of the planets haven't been mapped. If you map all those planets then sell the data your name might be put in the planet's info as the first person to map it and you might get a money bonus when selling it for being the first to completely map that system. You're most likely to find systems with unmapped planets in systems with stars you can't scoop, or at least that's my experience. Your experience may differ.

[primobrainlet]

Originally posted by Dolphin Bottlenose:

Mapping is not bad, and the money can quickly make a system worth a million.

It's not hard, too. I usually map with 1-2 spare probes left for the efficiency bonus. But don't pay attention to that bonus - it's only 1000 Cr extra.

And yes, you can find some interesting points of interest there. I found some biological ones in a nebulae - something like howling cones.

its super satisfying when you find a thing not in the codex. On my way to a gaurdian codex thing, I found some blue brain trees that the codex didnt have listed there. I was quite satisfied

[Dolphin Bottlenose]

Originally posted by Davy Jones:

On my way to a gaurdian codex thing, I found some blue brain trees that the codex didnt have listed there. I was quite satisfied

Check that it's actually listed as your discovery in the Codex. My biological signal has disappeared from my discoveries there. And I scanned them on several planets, from both, my ship and an SRV.

[Ostoia]

Thanks for info, as I am only 20 systems in r2r its time to turn back and get the scanner.

[Super Arthritis ⁧⁧ ⁧⁧Man]

Originally posted by Davy Jones:

Originally posted by Dolphin Bottlenose:

Mapping is not bad, and the money can quickly make a system worth a million.

It's not hard, too. I usually map with 1-2 spare probes left for the efficiency bonus. But don't pay attention to that bonus - it's only 1000 Cr extra.

And yes, you can find some interesting points of interest there. I found some biological ones in a nebulae - something like howling cones.

its super satisfying when you find a thing not in the codex. On my way to a gaurdian codex thing, I found some blue brain trees that the codex didnt have listed there. I was quite satisfied

Grats.

[Rhonda]

Another question: when using the DSS on the left side of the screen there is an indicator/bar showing the mass of the planet (relative to earth's mass I think) and also two 'bubbles' somewhere along that bar. What do these indicate? How do I read this?

[Nasher]

I made many millions just from scanning every system (not even any surfaces) I went through on the way to Colonia.

[Super Arthritis ⁧⁧ ⁧⁧Man]

Originally posted by Rhonda:

Another question: when using the DSS on the left side of the screen there is an indicator/bar showing the mass of the planet (relative to earth's mass I think) and also two 'bubbles' somewhere along that bar. What do these indicate? How do I read this?

I just updated my guide with the FSS screen, but that's the only thing I haven't learned yet. I'm figuring it out now.

Edit: Nm, I was wrong. You're talking about DSS not FSS.