Full Spectrum Analyzer/Stellar Probe
 

In SAIS, you can obtain the FSA or Stellar Probe, which allow you to select a star, which it then tells you about -- what type of planet it is, and possibly the fleet in orbit, as well.

I've had the idea of trying to work this basic feature out, perhaps using the XPLR command, but after a cursory glance, it seems unlikely that this idea will work.

Is my (brief) look wrong; is there a way to replicate these devices' functionality?

Re: Full Spectrum Analyzer/Stellar Probe
 

If memory serves correctly, the scoop on PAR1 for sensors, which is set to 0 on all sensors in the main game, was that that particular parameter was going to be range for the FSA/Probe ability, but never ended up being implemented in the final game.

So, you could try putting a non-zero value into PAR1 and seeing what happens. You'd probably need a value higher than 64, since that's the minimum distance between planets. And you'd want to test thoroughly, to make sure it doesn't cause some brand-new never-before-seen crashes.