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DISC is a loose collective of commanders interested in discovering more about how the universe of Elite Dangerous works.

Join us on our Discord to chat!

Projects

Sector Naming

This project involves working out the algorithms used to choose the names of procedurally-generated sectors, and the specific stars within them.
The main practical aim is to be able to identify where a given procedurally-generated system is in the galaxy, just from its name.
Secondary aims include the reverse operation (being able to predict what system names should be in a given position in the galaxy).

Cliff Notes: slides of Alot's talk from Lavecon 2016 are available here. Warning: may not make that much sense if you weren't there for the full explanation!

Status: Mostly Complete

Stellar Classification

This project involves gathering data on stars of different masses and other characteristics, and looking at how these map to star classes and other identifications within the game. A further part of this project is understanding the way in which star systems evolve over time in the Stellar Forge. Practical aims include being able to better predict the characteristics of stars based on minimal available data.

Status: Ongoing

Planetary Atmosphere Research

This project involves working out the effects different atmospheric compositions and pressures have on a planet's temperature, and determining the conditions where particular atmospheres are found. The contribution of a gas giant's mass to its temperature is known empirically.

Status: Stalled, gathering more data

Planetary Zones

This project involves working out the dimensions of the habitable zone and the zones within which other types of planet are found. These zones sometimes follow different rules in Elite than would be expected in the real world, but in most cases the calculations are straightforward and the ranges for different types of planet are known to reasonable accuracy. Practical aim is to predict the positions of valuable planets and so cut down on scanning time.

Status: Largely Complete

Galactic Structure

This project involves finding the broad structure of the galaxy, including such things as the locations of the neutron star fields, brown dwarf belt, the corridors in which high mass proc-gen stars are suppressed, the broad distribution of mass with respect to distance from the Core, and similar features.

Status: Ongoing

Exploration resources

List of links pointing to useful..., well, what the name says.