Ranger 27

DSV Tsibliyev before the exploration mission

Having finally upgraded to an Anaconda, the DSV Tsibliyev, I decided the best way to put it through its paces without spending an enormous sum outfitting it was to take it on an exploration run. Typically my previous journeys have been in an Asp Explorer, out about 1000 lightyears and then checking out whatever I find around that destination.  This time I decided to go a little further, with a light build I spotted on Reddit. The initial destination would be the Cepheus Dark Region, which sounded suitably mysterious, and the course would take an anti-clockwise route from there.

To get things started I sold my Federal Assault Ship at Umbila and traded in my smuggling Asp Explorer at the popular outfitting system of Diaguandri. The first major stop was HIP 97589, around 1000 lightyears from Sol, and during the journey I managed to spot two new water worlds at Wredguia ES-H C24-3 A5 and Wredguia EX-J B51-0 2. Looping round another 400 lights, I encountered an interesting close-orbiting trio of high metal content planets at Wredguia TA-N B49-0 5, 6 and 7. Onwards towards the edge of the galaxy, I reached the farthest point of the journey at PLAA EURK LL-Y D5, which is 2075 lightyears from Sol. Hooking around through waypoints at Synuefue GW-C D20 and Oochoss GA-F C28-1, I ran into a multitude of M-class stars orbited by dull pink ice worlds: hardly exciting finds. On the journey back to civilised space via the Stock 2 Sector, I encountered a splendid deep blue water world at Synuefai ZI-C C2-3 2.

Water world Synuefai ZI-C C2-3 2

As I returned to sell my exploration data at Killough City in the Mapocori system, another exploration journey came to a close. Once more, I had failed to discover a rare Earth-like world. To welcome me back to reality, an incompetent pirate Diamondback Explorer tried to interdict me for no useful reason. (The mysteries of the AI's brain are hard to fathom). The journey had encompassed 217 systems, earned me MCr4.883 from the data, and boosted my exploration rank by six points to Ranger 27. I don't know if I can manage a truly long-range exploration mission, given the lack of variety in gameplay and the danger of succumbing to space madness. But these one to two week missions are just about manageable without starting to hallucinate space ghosts in the cockpit.

See also:
Blog: Fine-tuning the Robigo run, 2 March 2016
Blog: Ranger 15, 14 January 2016
Blog: Pathfinder 60, 12 July 2015