Starfield: How to Find the Moon Jumper – Free Lanes Vehicle Guide

What the Moon Jumper Is (and Why You Won’t See It at Vendors)

The Moon Jumper is a new ground vehicle introduced in Starfield’s Free Lanes update, designed specifically for vertical exploration. Where the REV-8 is basically a fast rover for covering flat ground, the Moon Jumper adds powerful jump jets and strong boost capability so you can scale cliffs, bounce across craters, and reach high ledges without climbing on foot.

The key thing to understand up front is how you get it: the Moon Jumper is not sold by shipwrights or standard vendors. Unlike the REV-8, which you can just buy once you unlock vehicles, the Moon Jumper has to be discovered through exploration at new points of interest added in Free Lanes. There’s no menu shortcut or quest marker that simply hands it to you.

The good news is the community has now pinned down exactly what you’re looking for. Below is everything confirmed about where to find it, how to recognize the POI, and how to make the most of it once you do.

How the Moon Jumper’s Location Works in Free Lanes

The Moon Jumper spawns inside a specific POI called the Defunct Broadcasting Station — a small outpost with a large, silver radio tower on top. It has a house icon on your surface map, and if you zoom in you can spot the radio tower before you even land. The vehicle itself is sitting in an open garage: red and white, large wheels, glass cockpit. Walk up and hop in, and the game will give you a message explaining what the Moon Jumper is and how to use it. After that it stays with you on your ship, deploying when you land just like the REV-8 — and you can access it from any Ship Services Technician going forward.

The tricky part is that the Defunct Broadcasting Station is a random encounter POI that can show up on multiple planets and moons across the Settled Systems, not a single fixed location. The community has confirmed it on:

• Hawking I (Hawking system, far right edge of the galaxy map) — Coniferous Forest biome, above the area that looks like the Italy boot shape on the surface map.
• Luna (Earth’s moon in the Sol system) — a reliable fallback if you want a system you already know well.
• Porrima III (the Red Mile planet) — confirmed near a raider base; useful if you’re already running that area.
• A moon in the Sirius system — confirmed by multiple players.
• Tau Ceti — reported by community members as another active spawn near a radio tower.

Plan on landing at two or three different spots per planet before assuming the POI isn’t there — it took some players three landings on Hawking I before the Defunct Broadcasting Station appeared. The POI itself is small enough that you can scan for it quickly and move on if it’s not in your current tile.

Preparing to Find the Defunct Broadcasting Station

If you treat this like a targeted run instead of a casual wander, you’ll cut the search time down significantly. Here’s how I’d prep based on how Starfield’s planetary exploration actually plays:

1. Update and Verify Free Lanes Content

First, make sure you actually have the update that adds the Moon Jumper.

• Update Starfield to the latest version.
• On PC/Xbox, confirm the Free Lanes update is installed (check the patch notes from the main menu).
• Unlock ground vehicles first — this means paying the 25,000 credits for REV-8 access at a Ship Services Technician. If you find the Moon Jumper before doing this, the vehicle will spawn glitched into the ground and only work temporarily on that planet. Several players got burned by this: they stumbled onto it early, couldn’t properly use it, and had to find it again later. Unlock vehicles before you hunt.

2. Skill and Gear Loadout for Fast Planet Hopping

When I’m targeting specific discoveries, I build my character and ship for fast, repeated landings:

• Skills that help:
  • Astrophysics: Better scanning from orbit, so you quickly see which worlds even have interesting POIs.
  • Planetary Habitation: More worlds/moons become viable options, widening your search pool.
  • Boost Pack Training: Useful for clambering around new POIs and closing gaps between the landing site and the station.
• Ship setup: Favor high grav drive range and decent fuel so you can bounce between systems quickly.
• Inventory: Stock med packs and basic ammo only. Keep your carry weight light so you can move fast between landing tiles.

3. A Structured Planet-Sweeping Routine

Once you’re set, use a repeatable loop instead of wandering:

• From the star map, head to one of the confirmed systems first (Hawking, Sol, or Sirius) before branching out.
• After landing, use the Surface Map and zoom in to scan for the house icon with a radio tower visible above it.
• If it’s not in your current tile, fast-travel back to orbit and try a different landing spot on the same body before switching planets.
• Give each body two or three landing attempts — the POI’s RNG just needs a few rolls.

This “land, scan, move on” rhythm is how I’ve consistently forced the game to surface new content. The Defunct Broadcasting Station isn’t rare, just scattered — you’ll find it within a handful of attempts if you stay systematic.

What to Look For: Recognizing the Defunct Broadcasting Station

The POI has a house icon on the surface map — not a dungeon or combat marker. If you zoom into it on the Surface Map before heading over, you’ll see the silver radio tower rising above the small outpost structure. That’s your confirmation you’ve got the right place.

One shortcut for spotting it faster: after landing, jump into the air and open your scanner mid-flight. POI names appear on the scanner while you’re airborne, which lets you quickly check whether a Defunct Broadcasting Station is in your vicinity without having to run the full surface map.

Once you arrive:

• The station is a compact outpost — you won’t need to clear multiple buildings.
• Expect a fight — pirates and raiders guard these stations, so come in prepared rather than assuming it’s a clean pickup.
• The Moon Jumper is in an open covered area by the main building. You’ll see it immediately: red and white bodywork, oversized wheels, glass cockpit.
• Walk up and interact to enter the vehicle. The game triggers a short message explaining what it is and how the boost and jump jets work.
• No quest chain, no crafting, no credits beyond clearing the hostiles. Just find it and get in.

After the interaction, the Moon Jumper is permanently yours. It appears at your landing site after every touchdown, exactly like the REV-8 does, and shows up as an option with any Ship Services Technician at landing docks across the Settled Systems.

How the Moon Jumper’s Boost and Jump Jets Change Exploration

The Moon Jumper is built for verticality. Think of it as a hybrid between your normal ground vehicle and a supercharged boost pack you don’t have to wear.

• Jump jets: Let you launch the vehicle upward, scaling cliffs and structures that the REV-8 would need to snake around.
• Insane boost capability: High-power bursts that carry you farther and faster across uneven terrain, especially in low gravity.
• Customization/paint: Once unlocked, you can customize and paint the Moon Jumper, same as other vehicles.

A few things that will save you early frustration:

• Treat boost like your jetpack: short, controlled taps are safer and more efficient than holding the button.
• On rough terrain, use jump jets first to get height, then a horizontal boost to clear gaps or ridgelines.
• In tight spaces (canyons, near outposts), favor small hops over full-power launches so you don’t slam into geometry or overshoot ledges.

If you’re already comfortable with the REV-8’s handling, expect the Moon Jumper to feel like taking the stabilizers off. It rewards precise timing and punishes careless boosting, especially on very low gravity bodies.

One thing to set expectations on: despite the glass cockpit, the Moon Jumper does not protect you from environmental hazards or bullets. Your character still takes damage from toxic atmospheres, radiation, and gunfire just like they would on foot. Equip the right suit for the biome before hopping in.

Moon Jumper vs REV-8: When to Use Each

Once you own both, you’ll want to pick the right ride for the job instead of defaulting to one.

• REV-8 strengths:
  • Great for long, relatively flat stretches of terrain.
  • More forgiving handling for new players.
  • Perfect for resource runs where you’re mostly skimming surface deposits.
• Moon Jumper strengths:
  • Dominates in vertical, rocky, or cratered landscapes.
  • Makes it much easier to reach survey targets on cliffs and mesas.
  • Lets you chain jumps and boosts in low gravity for huge coverage per minute.

In practice, I’d lean on the REV-8 for routine mining loops on flatter planets, and switch to the Moon Jumper any time the map shows lots of elevation lines or you’re on a small moon with dramatic height differences.

Making the Most of the Moon Jumper on Low-Gravity Worlds

Low gravity is where the Moon Jumper should really shine. Even before Free Lanes, I used boost packs to “surf” low-grav moons; adding a vehicle with dedicated jump jets takes that to another level. A few habits will help you stay in control instead of tumbling across the surface.

1. Learn the Arc of Your Jumps

On a low-grav body, even a modest vertical push will send you flying. Start by:

• Doing short hops over small rocks to feel how long you stay airborne.
• Adding a tiny boost mid-air to see how much it lengthens your arc.
• Testing how quickly you can correct your landing direction before hitting the ground.

Once you’ve got the “feel” of one moon’s gravity, you can adjust more easily when you visit others with slightly different values.

2. Chain Vertical and Horizontal Movement

The real power move in low gravity will be combining the Moon Jumper’s jump and boost:

• Use jump jets to clear an initial ridge or crater wall.
• At the peak of your jump, tap boost toward your next objective or scanner ping.
• As you descend, steer toward safe landing zones rather than sharp rocks or steep slopes.

By repeating this rhythm, you can sail across a moon in big controlled bounds, covering far more distance than the REV-8 can manage on the same timer.

3. Use Height to Scan and Plan Routes

One underrated advantage of vertical vehicles is intel. While airborne, you get a much better look at:

• Nearby resource nodes and fauna.
• Hostile encampments or hazards you might want to avoid.
• Potential shortcuts over mountain ranges or crater fields.

Get in the habit of quickly checking your compass and scanner during each jump. On low-grav moons, you’ll have enough hang time to mark new points of interest or adjust your next landing on the fly.

Practical Wrap: Getting the Moon Jumper Without the Grind

The Moon Jumper isn’t behind a quest or a vendor — it’s sitting in a garage at a Defunct Broadcasting Station waiting for someone to walk in and claim it. Start with the confirmed systems (Hawking I, Luna in Sol, or a Sirius moon), scan for the house icon with the radio tower, and plan on two or three landing attempts per body. Most players find it within a session once they know what to look for.

• Make sure Free Lanes is installed and you’re on a vehicle-capable save.
• Head to Hawking I, Sol (Luna), or the Sirius system first — all confirmed Defunct Broadcasting Station spawns.
• On the Surface Map, zoom in and look for the house icon with the silver radio tower above the outpost.
• Walk into the open garage, interact with the Moon Jumper, done.
• Once acquired, favor it for vertical, rocky, or low-grav environments and keep the REV-8 for flatter mining runs.

The Moon Jumper fundamentally changes how you move across certain worlds. Being able to reach high-altitude locations, chain big jumps, and turn tedious climbs into a few seconds of boost makes surveying feel far less like busywork — and a lot more like the kind of freeform planetary traversal Starfield has always been trying to be.