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Where to Find Carbon & Phosphorus

By
Scott Peers

This page details where you can find Carbon and Phosphorus in No Man’s Sky. We’ll cover the best sources for each of these key materials and how to find them on planets. We’ll also cover their primary uses in charging the Mining Beam module for the Multi-Tool.

Icon Element Uses
NMSCarbon.png Carbon Recharges mining equipment for the Multi-Tool, used to construct numerous base building and decorative parts
NMSCondensedCarbon.png Condensed Carbon Efficiently recharges mining equipment for the Multi-Tool, also used to craft numerous base building parts and some equipment modules
NMSPhosphorus.png Phosphorus Recharges mining equipment for the Multi-Tool, also used to construct some base, Exosuit, Exocraft, Starship and Multi-Tool modules

How to Find Carbon, Condensed Carbon, and Phosphorus in No Man’s Sky

Mine Carbon from Flora

The main source of Carbon in No Man’s Sky is from most flora types on any planet. Carbon is a particularly abundant resource that can be found in trees, plants, and almost any other form of flora. All you need to extract the Carbon is the basic Mining Laser module on your Multi-Tool. This often comes as a default technology module on any Multi-Tool, so you should be ready to harvest vast quantities of Carbon early on in the game.

Mine Condensed Carbon from Carbon Crystals

If you want a more refined form of Carbon which provides more energy per piece when recharging Mining Laser modules, Condensed Carbon is a good option. You can find this in Carbon Crystals which are found on almost any planet, with the chemical element symbol of C+. You will need the Advanced Mining Laser upgrade for your Multi-Tool before you can mine these crystals.

Mine Rocks on Scorched Planets for Phosphorus

The main source for Phosphorus is from almost any rock on scorched planets. All you need to do is scout a planet by scanning it from your starship to check whether it has Phosphorus as one of the primary materials present on the planet. You can then use your Analysis Visor when you’re on the surface to inspect rocks and check whether Phosphorus is present.

How to Recharge the Mining Laser

The main use of Carbon, Condensed Carbon and Phosphorus is to recharge your Mining Laser, and its more advanced upgrade modules. You can do this from the quickslot menu by pressing X-Key, then navigating to the mining laser to select the material that you want to use to charge it. Regular Carbon has by far the most alternative uses outside of charging the Mining Laser, so you may want to use Condensed Carbon where possible, especially since it charges the equipment more efficiently.

Alternative uses for Carbon, Condensed Carbon, and Phosphorus

Other than recharging the Mining Laser, there are many uses for all three of the above ingredients. Carbon is used in a vast quantity of base building and decorative parts, while Condensed Carbon is more specialized for use in various crafted products, tech upgrade modules, but also some select base parts. Phosphorus is also used for various upgrade modules and some base parts, but nowhere near as many as regular Carbon.

Other Sources of Carbon, Condensed Carbon, and Phosphorus

In addition to extracting Carbon, Condensed Carbon, and Phosphorus from flora, minerals, or rocks, you can refine each of these elements from other materials. A full list of these are detailed in the tables below.

Refine Carbon

Material 1 Output
NMSCactusFlesh.png1 Cactus Flesh NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon
NMSGammaRoot.png1 Gamma Root NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon
NMSFungalMould.png1 Fungal Mould NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon
NMSOxygen.png1 Oxygen NMSCarbon.png1 Carbon
NMSSolanium.png1 Solanium NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon
NMSStarBulb.png1 Star Bulb NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon

Refine Condensed Carbon

Material 1 Material 2 Output
NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon N/A NMSCondensedCarbon.png1 Condensed Carbon
NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon NMSOxygen.png2 Oxygen NMSCondensedCarbon.png5 Condensed Carbon
NMSFaecium.png1 Faecium NMSMordite.png1 Mordite NMSCondensedCarbon.png2 Condensed Carbon
NMSFaecium.png1 Faecium NMSCarbon.png2 Carbon NMSCondensedCarbon.png2 Condensed Carbon
NMSCytoPhosphate.png1 Cyto-Phosphate N/A NMSCondensedCarbon.png1 Condensed Carbon

Refine Phosphorus

Material 1 Material 2 Output
NMSSolanium.png2 Solanium NMSSalt.png1 Salt NMSPhosphorus.png1 Phosphorus
NMSDioxite.png2 Dioxite NMSFerriteDust.png1 Ferrite Dust NMSPhosphorus.png1 Phosphorus
NMSDioxite.png2 Dioxite NMSPureFerrite.png1 Pure Ferrite NMSPhosphorus.png1 Phosphorus

(1 of 4) You can find Condensed Carbon in crystals on most planets.

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Guide Information

  • Publisher
    Hello Games
  • Platforms,
    PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, XB One, XB X|S
  • Guide Release
    27 April 2022
  • Last Updated
    11 January 2023
    Version History
  • Guide Author

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This ongoing guide for the amazing No Man’s Sky includes the following:

  • Tips and Tricks to get started
  • Technology Upgrades
  • Building a Base guides
  • Crafting Guides
  • Mission Guides
  • Encounters
    As well as this there is also information on the game’s numerous updates, as well as the forthcoming Nintendo Switch version of No Man’s Sky.

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