Taking your first core sample
Facts checked 1 Nov 2026
So far you've extracted from samples someone else found. Now your Miner finds one: a core sample drilled into a lot of your choosing, to see how much of a resource lies beneath it.
What you need
- A Core Drill: Each sample uses up one Core Drill, taken from a warehouse your crew can use. If your crew's warehouse hasn't got one, buy one at Academy Market 2.
- A Ready Crew on Adalia Academy: Your crew travels to the lot and stays there while it samples, so it must be ready to start.
- No Permission Needed: You can sample any lot on an asteroid whose resources have been scanned. To extract what you find, though, you'll need an extractor on that lot, so choose a lot with one of the Academy's leased extractors.
Choose where to sample
Turn on the asteroid's resource map and choose the resource you're after, such as Olivine or Carbon Dioxide. The brighter the area, the richer the ground. Look for a lot with an Academy extractor in one of the richest spots.
When you select the lot, the sampling button shows its abundance for that resource, for example Start Core Sample (87.3%). The higher the figure, the bigger the sample you can expect.
Take the sample
- Select the lot and click Start Core Sample.
- Check the Resource is the one you want.
- Under Tool, choose the Core Drill in your crew's warehouse.
- Check the Crew Travel and Sample Time, and the Discovery Minimum and Maximum: the smallest and largest sample you could find.
- Confirm, and approve in your wallet.
How long it takes
Drilling takes about an hour, plus your crew's journey to the lot and back. Unlike extraction, your crew is busy the whole time, so plan your other jobs around it. A Miner with the Surveyor trait samples a little faster.
See what you found
When the timer runs out, the button changes to Analyze Sample. Click it and approve, and the sample's size is revealed: somewhere between the minimum and maximum you saw, and the richer the lot, the better your chances. A Miner with the Prospector trait tends to find a little more. The next lesson, Reading and improving your sample, explains what the result tells you and how to improve it.