The short answer
Scan a Scanner Station fragment, then use Habitat Builder to construct the facility with 3 Titanium, 1 System Chip and 1 Wiring Kit. Power it, choose a resource and select a displayed contact to mark a gathering destination.
Before you start
- Bring a charged handheld Scanner and enough oxygen for the fragment trip.
- Unlock Habitat Builder and prepare a powered base interior. The linked base and crafting guides cover those prerequisites.
Choose a fragment stop
These are separate published routes. Scan the station fully and confirm the blueprint in your menu before returning. Distances are approximate; Kingy has not independently recorded either trip.
| Reported location | Where to look |
|---|---|
| Camp One · GameWith | Roughly 240 m northeast of the Lifepod. Find the gap between the two largest wrecked shelters and follow the passage beneath it into a room. |
| Old Habitat · PC Gamer | Roughly 350 m north of the Lifepod. Look inside the habitat for a scannable station. |
Build the facility in your base
Reserve the separate Wiring Kit as well as the finished System Chip. This table lists construction components; check your current recipes before converting them into a raw shopping list. Place the station inside your base and confirm power is available.
| Facility / tool | Finished construction ingredients |
|---|---|
| Scanner Station / Habitat Builder | 3 Titanium · 1 System Chip · 1 Wiring Kit |
Mark one useful gathering destination
GameWith and PC Gamer report a 300-metre scan range. Treat that as the published range around the station, not a promise that every material exists near your base.
- Interact with the powered station and choose the resource you need, such as Silver.
- Select one of its displayed contacts to create a tracking signal.
- Follow the marker, then search the surrounding area for the actual resource node. Bring the appropriate gathering tool and leave enough oxygen for the return.
Check power and the selected contact
Scanning needs base power. Exact active and idle consumption are not independently established here; use your current HUD readings when planning the power budget.
| Problem | Check next |
|---|---|
| Station will not scan | Check the base’s generation and demand with scanning active. The base-power guide below explains the readings and transmitter connections. |
| No useful contact | Confirm the selected resource and consider the reported scan range. A different gathering area may be needed. |
| Marker reached; no visible resource | Search around the indicated area and check that you selected the intended contact. |
| A filter is missing | Do not assume the station is broken. This guide does not verify every filter unlock or the rules controlling which filters appear. |
Account for released scan fixes
Buddy System fixed the Scanner Station showing nonexistent resource nodes and using an Alterra icon for Bloom infestations. Earlier, Adaptive Measures fixed Sulfur detection in one Heat Zone of the Overgrown Ruins.
Those patch notes describe fixes, not a guarantee that every result in every save is correct. If a misleading contact persists on the released build after the checks above, record the location and report it through the game’s feedback tool.
Sources for this section
Your checklist
0 of 4 complete · Loading saved progress…
Research checked 2026-09-12. This is a source-based guide; Kingy has not independently play-tested these steps. Evidence and coverage.