The Science Lab is your station’s shield research building. It opens up after you finish the Unlock Science Labs research, then upgrades through 80 levels. Every level raises the Shield Deflection of your whole fleet and adds shield health to your Explorers, so it pays off most if you fly Explorer-hull ships or fight opponents who lean on shield damage. Worth steady investment rather than a rush.
What the Science Lab does
The game describes the Science Lab in one line: a shield tech research facility. In practice, each upgrade improves two defensive stats across your whole account.
| Buff | Active from | Value at level anchors |
|---|---|---|
| Shield Deflection bonus (all ships) | Level 1 | 10% at L10, 20% at L20, 54% at L40, 100% at L50, 300% at L70, 700% at L80 |
| Explorer shield health bonus (Explorers only) | Level 1 | 30% at L10, 60% at L20, 120% at L40, 150% at L50, 500% at L70, 1,200% at L80 |
Shield Deflection lowers the damage your shields take, and it applies to every ship you own. The Explorer line only helps Explorer-hull ships by adding to their shield health pool. Both start small: the deflection bonus sits at 1% at level 1 and reaches 25% by level 25, so early upgrades barely move the needle. The real returns arrive in the top band, where deflection climbs from 185% at level 65 to 700% at level 80 and Explorer shield health jumps from 275% to 1,200% over the same stretch. Values shown are current as of the latest game data.
How to unlock the Science Lab
Placing the Science Lab at level 1 needs one thing: the Unlock Science Labs research completed to rank 1. That first build costs 243,338 Parsteel and 3 2★ Uncommon Refined Gas and finishes in 18 seconds. From level 5 onward, every upgrade also requires your Operations and R&D Department at the matching level, so the Lab tracks your station’s overall progress instead of running ahead of it.
Upgrade costs and build times
Costs and unboosted build times climb steeply at the top end. A few milestone levels:
| Level | Cost | Build time | Requires |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 243,338 Parsteel, 3 2★ Uncommon Refined Gas | 18s | Unlock Science Labs research |
| 10 | 248,370 Parsteel | 50m | Operations 10, R&D Department 10 |
| 20 | 387,770 Parsteel, 1,275 Dilithium | 13h 55m | Operations 20, R&D Department 20 |
| 30 | 13.26M Parsteel, 117,000 Dilithium, plus Refined Gas | 1d 11h | Operations 30, R&D Department 30 |
| 40 | 2.866B Parsteel, 9.03M Dilithium, plus Refined Gas | 24d 5h | Operations 40, R&D Department 40 |
| 50 | 125B Parsteel, 551.2M Dilithium | 415d 1h | Operations 50, R&D Department 50 |
| 60 | 40.19T Parsteel, 73.88B Dilithium, plus Refined Gas | 874d 10h | Operations 60, R&D Department 60 |
| 70 | 26.97M Σ-Parsteel, 237,975 Σ-Dilithium, plus Refined Gas and Crystal | 230d 15h | Operations 70, R&D Department 70 |
| 80 | 13.17B Σ-Parsteel, 29.04M Σ-Dilithium, plus 7★ Refined Gas and Crystal | 5567d 8h | Operations 80, R&D Department 80 |
Taking one Science Lab from level 1 to 80 runs about 114.2 trillion Parsteel and 207.2 billion Dilithium, plus a large stack of refined gas, refined crystal, and Sigma resources at the highest levels. The cumulative unboosted build time is roughly 30,499 days, so speedups and construction bonuses do most of the real work past level 50.
How the Science Lab fits your station
Because every upgrade past level 5 sits behind your Operations and R&D Department levels, the Science Lab rarely bottlenecks you on its own. You raise it as those two buildings allow. The payoff is defensive, so prioritize it if you run Explorers or spend time in PvP where shield strength decides fights. If your account leans on Battleships or Interceptors, the Explorer shield health line does nothing for you, and only the fleet-wide Shield Deflection bonus applies. Keep it moving in step with your Operations level rather than pouring resources into it early.
Is the Science Lab worth upgrading?
Yes, at a steady pace. The fleet-wide Shield Deflection bonus helps every ship you own, and it grows quickly in the higher levels, reaching 700% at level 80. Explorer pilots get the most out of it, since the shield health line tops out at 1,200%. It is not an early priority over your resource and ship-building structures, but it earns its place in the mid and late game, especially for shield-focused fleets.