Satisfactory Alien Tech: SAM, Somersloop, Mercer Sphere & Depot

A strange planet like the one in Satisfactory will inevitably be home to many odd organisms and items. You’ve likely stumbled across some of them while playing, but perhaps weren’t quite sure what to do with them. This is where the MAM (Molecular Analysis Machine) comes in: you can have new and unusual finds analysed there to unlock recipes and features. This applies especially to the alien matter you can discover on the planet. From SAM Ore, to Somersloops, through to Mercer Spheres, the planet offers a range of items that are perfect for research in the MAM.

Where to find them in Satisfactory: locating SAM Ore, Somersloops and Mercer Spheres

To kick off the research you’ll actually need three resources. After all, there are aspects of the planet that seem unfamiliar and might yield useful technological advances. That means getting out to explore the map and venturing into the wilds, away from your factories. We already have a complete guide to exploration so you can set out well prepared (Exploring Satisfactory: Gear, combat system and resources) .

• SAM: SAM, short for “Strange Alien Matter”, is a type of ore. It’s distinctive thanks to its purple colour and is relatively rare. Deposits are scattered across the entire map, with no single best location to mine it. You can extract it by hand or with a Miner, just like other ores.

• Mercer Sphere: Mercer Spheres are spread all over the map and are an important research resource. There are currently 298 of them (version 1.1), and you can simply pick them up when you find them.

• Somersloop: Much like Mercer Spheres, Somersloops are found through exploration. They are rarer, with only 106 in total (version 1.1). They’re often guarded by enemies or tucked away in hard-to-reach spots.

MAM research in Satisfactory: alien technology and branches

You can actually start fairly early with alien technology research as soon as you’ve found some of the resources mentioned. This path unlocks several very important features, including the Dimensional Depot, which lets you store items in a kind of cloud. Some parts of the research are, however, gated by milestones and require resources like Computers or specific machines, which you’ll only unlock later.

SAM Ore, Reanimated SAM and SAM Fluctuator: the basics

We recommend starting with the extraction of SAM Ore and unlocking the first three research steps. These recipes form the foundation for the other two branches and can be enabled quite early in the game.

• First, collect 30x SAM to unlock the first two nodes. This grants you a scanner upgrade and the recipe for Reanimated SAM.
• Reanimated SAM is a key resource that lets you transmute ores into other ores.
• Use Reanimated SAM, Steel Pipes and Cable to craft SAM Fluctuators. These are the basis for all subsequent recipes in this branch.

Alien Power Booster and Somersloop: increasing power efficiently

The right-hand side of the MAM research focuses on using Somersloops, the strange alien stones that look like a pink S. Once you’ve found and researched one, you can tune your scanner to them and locate more. The branch isn’t very long, but it unlocks another way to generate power.

• Find a Somersloop to start the research and upgrade your scanner.
• Use 10x SAM Fluctuators to progress. That’s why you should handle the basics first, or you won’t get far.

From the next step onwards it gets exciting, as you can unlock a new power source. If you need a lot of electricity, this branch is perfect. All steps, however, require Somersloops, which are limited.

• Use 1x Somersloop, 100x SAM Fluctuators and 50x Computers to unlock the Alien Power Booster. This machine not only generates additional power from Somersloops, it also increases your overall power output. Per booster on the grid you produce 10% more power. The catch is that Somersloops are limited.
• Continue along this branch to unlock the Alien Power Matrix. For that, you’ll need Energy Shards, which you unlock via Power Slugs. The matrix is a late-game item, really coming into play with Tier 9. 5x Matrix increases the booster’s power gain from 10% to 30%.
• On the other path you can unlock a new form of overclocking, the Production Booster. It’s also known as “Overslooping” and likewise consumes Somersloops to boost machine output without using more input resources.

Dimensional Depot: cloud storage for items in Satisfactory

On the left-hand side of the alien tech tree you’ll work with Mercer Spheres to unlock the Dimensional Depot. This serves as a cloud storage system, giving you anytime, anywhere access to your stored items. Unlock the base recipe with 1x Mercer Sphere and 11x SAM Fluctuators to advance the depot further.

As you progress, you can unlock additional upgrades:

• With another 3x Spheres, 29x Fluctuators and 17x Computers, you can use the Dimensional Depot directly from your inventory and deposit items there.
• One branch lets you increase the depot’s capacity step by step by investing more spheres and fluctuators. There are 4 tiers, each adding one extra stack per item.
• The other branch works the same way, but speeds up your upload rate. You can upgrade your initial 15 items/min in four steps up to 240 items/min.

Bear in mind, just like with Somersloops, that Mercer Spheres are limited. You need 97 spheres for the MAM. Any extras can go into expanding your storage system.

Conclusion: research alien tech and produce efficiently

Researching alien technology on the planet is brilliant and unlocks several very important features. Once you’ve laid the groundwork with SAM Fluctuators, you can use the two other branches to improve your power production and storage system. Both are extremely useful and become indispensable later in the game.

To generate more power and store your items in the Dimensional Depot, why not rent your own Satisfactory server from us. Then you too can explore the alien world and collect strange artefacts to supercharge your production lines!