Planetary Landing: Difference between revisions

The landings are graphically seamless with a small pause for instance loading, including peer-to-peer (p2P matchmaking and instance creation, and the planets can be explored in low-level flight or by using a Surface Reconnaissance Vehicle.<ref name=":1">[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1461411552/elite-dangerous/description Elite: Dangerous by Frontier Developments - Kickstarter]</ref> Once on the surface, players can discover constructed, as well as natural, [[points of interest]], which can be military bases, research establishments, hideouts, [[starport|starports]], mining complexes, crashed [[ships]] and debris to investigate. <span style="color:#D3D3D3">The nature of the encounter varies depending on where the player is: the planet type and composition, and the local topography affected by geology.</span><ref name=":5">[http://us2.campaign-archive2.com/?u=dcbf6b86b4b0c7d1c21b73b1e&id=47bd8c04aa Elite Dangerous Newsletter #97]</ref>

# Select a landable planet or moon, and any desired PoI on its surface, and approach it in supercruise.

# Keep ship speed in the blue zone when near enough to the planet/moon that it becomes visible to the eye. If the gravity is lower than 0.5 G, speed may need to be further decreased, possibly to the minimum, to ensure a smooth passage through the planet/moon's exclusion zone and prevent an emergency drop.

# Orient the ship so that it is approaching the desired landing site on the surface at an approximate 45 degree angle for the descent. A shallower angle will increase the time that the ship takes to descend and possibly result in overshooting the destination, while a sharper angle risks a collision with the surface or dropping out of supercruise hundreds of kilometers away from the destination, but the angle does not need to be exact.

# Passing through the blue line surrounding a landable planet/moon will cause the [[HUD]] to generate the altitude and G meters. Check the ship's descent angle relative to the destination and keep it out of the red zone without shallowing out. If speed is not already at minimum and the ship is decreasing altitude too fast to adjust its course, which is common with small, low-G worlds, decrease speed now.

# At 25 km above the surface, the ship will drop from supercruise and enter a [[glide]] for the final stage of the landing process. If the ship's speed is too high when it reaches the 25 km zone, an emergency drop will occur instead, and if the angle of descent is too shallow during the glide, the glide will fail and the ship will return to supercruise. The ship will maintain a speed of 2.5 km per second during the glide.

# As the glide continues, take one last opportunity to check and adjust the angle of descent. If the ship is descending too quickly, shallow out the glide to prolong it, and if the ship is overshooting the destination, angle it downward to end the glide faster.

# At 3 km above the surface, the ship will emerge from the glide and revert to normal space thrusters. If the landing process up to this point was performed correctly, the ship should be a handful of kilometers away from the destination or even directly above it.

# To land at a [[Surface Port]], request docking permission as with an orbital station, then dock as usual. To land directly on the surface of a planet/moon, decrease altitude and extend landing gear when the HUD radar begins displaying the terrain. Look for a relatively smooth, flat area large enough for the ship. The HUD will indicate when the ship is above a suitable landing zone and is level with the surface. Upon a successful landing, the ship's thrusters and power planet will automatically deactivate.

== See also ==

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[[Category:Gameplay]]