21Space Scanner

The main advantage of the Space Scanner over the Long Range Distance Meter is that it uses a cone instead of a ray to detect celestial bodies. It outputs the distance to the closest celestial body within that cone.

The wider detection area makes the Space Scanner much better for discovering unknown celestial bodies. Finding a distant planet with a single ray would otherwise be extremely difficult.

Use the Space Scanner’s input port to adjust the width of the detection cone. Start with a wide cone to locate something in front of you. Once a celestial body is detected, gradually narrow the cone while keeping the target within it.

By repeatedly narrowing the cone, you can determine the target’s direction more precisely and use it to navigate toward the next celestial body.