Probe Scanner

The Probe Scanner is a widget in Astroneer. It allows the player to find various Probes on each planet.

Uses
The Probe Scanner is used to scan for Probes found on each planet. To use the Probe Scanner, it must be placed in the widget slot of the backpack or a front attachment slot on a vehicle to function, then press the corresponding context key (default / on keyboard or / on controller, for left or right slots respectively) to activate. The Probe Scanner will run for 15 seconds, or until power runs out. After being activated, the scanner retracts and cools down for 10 seconds. During the cool-down, the dish will slowly lift back up until it is pointing in an upward direction and makes an audible chime when it is ready to be activated again.

Each activation of the Probe Scanner consumes at total of 4.5 Units of power at a rate of 0.3 U/s for 15 seconds.

When activated the Probe Scanner will produce a tune, and the lights on the bottom of the scanner will activate indicating how close to the probe the player is, one light being the furthest and three lights being the closest. If the player is far enough away, the scanner will first point in the general direction the player must travel, and as the player gets closer it will spin, slowing down when it points in the direction of the probe. As the player gets closer to the probe, the tune will grow higher in pitch and change, more lights will light up, and while spinning it will focus more directly on the probe.

Once the probe is found, the scanner must be placed in the probe slot to activate, which will consume the scanner and unlock the appropriate palette customization. More scanners will be needed to activate all probes on each planet.