Space Platform Optimization
In Factorio 2.0, your Space Platform is more than just a ferry - it is a mobile, automated factory capable of processing asteroids and defending itself across the stars. Optimizing your platform's layout and logic is the key to efficient interplanetary travel.
Geometry & Drag
The width of your platform determines its drag. Narrower platforms move significantly faster through space. Aim for a "vertical" design rather than a wide base.
Thruster Management
Thrusters require a 1:1 ratio of Fuel and Oxidizer. Use circuit logic to ensure your pumps only run when both fluids are available to prevent stalling.
Quality Tiles
Space platforms have limited real estate. Using Quality 3-5 engines and solar panels is highly recommended to maximize output in a small footprint.
Asteroid Processing
Asteroids are your primary source of thruster fuel and ammunition. An unoptimized processing line will quickly back up and stall your platform.
- Advanced asteroid processing is a variety upgrade, not a yield upgrade. It is gated behind Gleba, not Vulcanus: the technology needs agricultural science packs alongside production, utility and space science, so it is not reachable until Gleba is producing. And it lowers the headline output on purpose. Basic metallic crushing gives 20 iron ore per chunk; the advanced recipe gives 10 iron ore plus 4 copper ore. Basic carbonic gives 10 carbon; advanced gives 5 carbon plus 2 sulfur. Basic oxide gives 5 ice; advanced gives 3 ice plus 2 calcite. The advanced recipes also return the chunk far less often, 5 percent against 20 percent. Switch when you want copper, sulfur and calcite in orbit without shipping them up, not when you want more iron.
- The same technology unlocks advanced thruster fuel and oxidizer, which is usually the better reason to research it, and the size of the gap is not small. Basic thruster fuel is 2 carbon and 10 water into 75 fuel in a 2 second craft. Advanced thruster fuel is 2 carbon, 1 calcite and 100 water into 1,500 fuel in 10 seconds. Same carbon, twenty times the fuel. The oxidizer pair is identical in shape: 2 iron ore and 10 water into 75, against 2 iron ore, 1 calcite and 100 water into 1,500. Per machine per second it is 37.5 against 150, and per unit of crushed asteroid it is a factor of twenty. The cost is calcite, which is exactly why the advanced crushing recipes above start producing it.
- Wrong chunk type? Reprocess rather than dump. Each chunk has a reprocessing recipe with the same shape: a 40% chance of the chunk you put in, and a 20% chance of each of the other two. So one chunk in gives an expected 0.8 chunks out, a 20% loss for the privilege of rebalancing the mix. It is a 2 second craft for metallic and carbonic and 1 second for oxide. On a route that hands you the wrong mix, a reprocessing loop is the difference between a stalled belt and a balanced one.
- Filter Inserters: Use these to prioritize Metallic chunks for ammo and Carbonic/Oxide for fuel. Set a "Dump" condition to toss excess chunks back into space to avoid inventory clogs.
Solar Power Is Not the Same Everywhere
This is the platform number that catches people out on their second route. Every planet in Space Age declares its own solar power in space, and the spread across the system is tenfold:
| Orbit | Orbital distance | Solar power in space | Panels needed, relative to Nauvis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vulcanus | 10 | 600 | 0.5x |
| Nauvis | 15 | 300 | 1x |
| Gleba | 20 | 200 | 1.5x |
| Fulgora | 25 | 120 | 2.5x |
| Aquilo | 35 | 60 | 5x |
A platform whose solar array is sized for Nauvis orbit has a fifth of its power when it reaches Aquilo, and platform real estate is the one thing you cannot add in flight. Size the array for the dimmest orbit on the route, not the brightest, or carry a non-solar source for the far leg. It also explains why a Vulcanus shuttle feels over-powered: at distance 10 the same panel is doing double duty.
The distances in that table are the orbital distances the game itself assigns, and they are the reason an Aquilo run is the long one: 35 against Vulcanus at 10.
Platform Capacities Worth Knowing
Three inventory sizes govern how much slack a platform has, and they are smaller than they feel: the space platform hub holds 59 slots, the asteroid collector 39, and the cargo landing pad on the ground 80. The hub and the cargo bays are the tough structures at 1,000 hit points each; the thruster and the asteroid collector are 300 each, which is why an unlucky asteroid takes out a collector long before it threatens the hub. If you are running railgun turrets, note they carry a single ammo slot, so ammo resupply logistics matter more than turret count.
Interplanetary Logistics Hub
Connecting your planet-side Rocket Silo to your Space Platform Hub is the pinnacle of Factorio automation.
- Automated Requests: Set your Space Platform Hub to "Request" specific items. Your planetary Rocket Silos will automatically launch when the platform is in orbit if they have the supplies ready.
- Fuel Efficiency: Automate the production of Rocket Fuel on your platforms using asteroid chunks to reduce the number of rocket launches needed from the ground.
Defense Tip: Railgun turrets are essential for large asteroids, while laser turrets handle small debris. Place the majority of your defenses at the front of the platform, as that is where 90% of impacts occur during transit.
Master the stars. View plans.