How to farm Stellar Ice and Contaminated Metal in No Man’s Sky
This guide explains how players can farm two resources, Stellar Ice and Contaminated Metal, introduced in No Man's Sky's Cosmos update. Both materials require new equipment and processes not previously used in the game, and knowing how to obtain them helps players make the most of the update's added content.
To collect Stellar Ice, players must fit a Corvette-class starship with a new Tractor Beam part, costing 350,000 credits plus materials, then travel to an Ice Field planet and destroy blue-and-white comets among the asteroids to yield Stellar Geodes, which are then processed at a trading outpost using the Gravitino Coil. Contaminated Metal is gathered differently: players search the Star Chart for Minor Wreckage marked with a Space Junk signal, then mine the debris directly with the Mining Tool, with no need to return it for processing.
- No Man's Sky's Cosmos update adds Stellar Ice and Contaminated Metal resources.
- Stellar Ice needs a Tractor Beam, Ice Fields and outpost processing.
- Contaminated Metal is mined directly from Space Junk wreckage.
New here? Start with this
Stellar Ice and Contaminated Metal are two resources added to the exploration game No Man's Sky as part of its Cosmos update, a free content update developers regularly release to expand what players can do in the game. Both materials are new additions, meaning existing players need fresh guidance on how to find and collect them, as the usual methods used for other resources do not apply.
The game is set in a vast procedurally generated universe where players pilot spacecraft, mine materials and trade goods to progress. Gathering resources like these often requires specific tools, ship upgrades or locations, so players commonly turn to guides to understand the quickest and most reliable methods rather than working it out through trial and error.
This matters to the game's community because efficiently obtaining new materials affects how quickly players can use the update's other features, such as crafting or upgrading equipment that depends on these resources.