Mining: Difference between revisions

* [[Empire Border Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in high-sec {{ColorSecurityRating|0.5}} <ref>Patch notes: [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-20-11 Version 20-11] release 2022-12-13.1 > Features & Changes > Science & Industry.</ref> systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Eifyrium}}, Jet Ochre, Pellucid Crokite and {{Co|wheat|Ytirium}}.

* [[Nullsec Border Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in null-sec systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Imperial Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Augmented Eifyrium}}, {{Co|wheat|Mordunium}}, Pellucid Crokite and {{Co|wheat|Moonshine Ytirium}}.

* [[Nullsec Blue A0 Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in Blue A0 star systems in null-sec space {{Verify}}. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Imperial Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Augmented Eifyrium}}, Jet Ochre, {{Co|wheat|Plunder Mordunium}} and {{Co|wheat|Moonshine Ytirium}}.

The basic mechanics of mining are very simple: Fit your ship with a [[ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview#Fitting strategies and mining modules|mining module]], approach and [[targeting|target]] an asteroid, and activate your mining module. At the ''end'' of each cycle (usually between 1 and 3 minutes, depending on the module used), the ore mined is automatically deposited in your ship's cargo or mining hold. The mining module will then automatically continue mining until either your cargo/mining hold is full, or the asteroid has been "mined out" (all the available ore in that asteroid has been mined and it disappears). Make sure that you keep the asteroid within range of your mining module (usually by stopping your ship, or orbiting the asteroid)—if you are too far away, the mining module will finish its current cycle regardless, but you will receive no ore.

| '''Frigate'''

| '''Destroyer'''

These skills are the bread and butter of any miner and should be trained up to level IV reasonably quickly (primarily for the increased mining yield, but {{sk|Mining|IV}} in particular is a prerequisite to many other mining-related skills). However, note that these skills only increase the yield for ore mining!

=== Survey scanner ===

[[File:Survey_scanner.jpg|thumb|250px|The results of a survey scan. Note the different kinds of asteroid which make up this asteroid belt, and the different amounts of ore in each.]]

The survey scanner (a mid-slot module) is a very useful tool for any asteroid miner, as it shows how much ore each asteroid in the vicinity contains. This is important, as asteroid mining modules (mining lasers and strip miners) will always complete an entire cycle (60s for mining lasers, 180s for strip miners), irrespective of how much ore is actually left in the asteroid.

 

For instance, say you are mining an asteroid that contains 200 units of Veldspar (Veldspar has a volume of 0.1{{m3}} per unit, so this asteroid contains 20{{m3}} of Veldspar). Your Mining Laser I has a yield of (say) 100{{m3}}/min, and a cycle time of 60 seconds. Even though there are only 20{{m3}} of Veldspar left in the asteroid, the module will complete its entire 60 second cycle before shutting off (with a message saying "the asteroid is depleted")—but those 60 seconds of mining only yielded 20{{m3}} of ore (instead 100{{m3}})! The problem becomes even worse when using strip miners, as they have a much higher yield and a cycle time three times as long—which can result in a lot of wasted time if you're mining asteroids that don't contain much ore.

 

Therefore, when mining, refresh the survey scanner window from time to time (it does not refresh automatically, you need to reactivate the survey scanner module) to check whether the asteroid(s) you are mining are close to depletion. If an asteroid is almost empty, you can "[[Mining Yield#Short cycling|short cycle]]" your mining laser (i.e. turn it off manually before it completes its full cycle, by clicking on it) to mine out the last dregs of ore before moving on to another asteroid. Note that each time you activate your mining laser it takes energy from your ship's [[capacitor]]; activate it too often and you might empty your capacitor and have to wait a moment for it to recharge.

You can [[Targeting|target]] asteroids directly from the survey scanner window (much like the asteroids in the overview); this can be a useful shortcut to help you mine the particular asteroid you're interested in. A little marker shows you which asteroids you are targeting (note that, just like the rest of the information, this is only refreshed when you refresh the survey scanner window).

==== Appraising an Asteroid Belt ====

Survey scanners can be used to provide the approximate value of an asteroid belt with the help of 3rd party appraisal tools. This activity is relatively easy when in a fleet that provides range bonuses to Survey Scanner. Without range boosts an estimate can be done by scanning one area of the belt at a time and removing duplicate asteroid entries before submitting.

'''Steps to get an estimate'''

# Move into a position where the Survey Scanner range-indicator overlaps all the asteroids to be appraised

# Perform Survey Scan by clicking on the module's icon or appropriate hotkey

# Expand any category of ore in the Survey Scanner Results window that is collapsed (ores in collapsed categories do not get copied)

## Click on any item in the window to select it

Buy values in Jita or one of the other [[trade hubs]] would be the closest estimate to actual returns from an immediate sale of the ore.