From here you can investigate other planets. General information can be found in the Sectors section though. Here more specific information can be obtained. However, there is a chance that your scans will be detected. There is a further chance that your scan will be detected and your target will track the origin of it, making them suspicious of you. Scan detections appear as news items.
Scanner accuracy:
e.g. A basic scan only tells you the metal of planet of the target location to the nearest 200.