From publisher blurb:
The Frontier Scout Serviceis offering a substantial sum for a dangerous mission in the sector just beyond the Sonora. A previous mapping expedition discovered a world just four parsecs into the next sector. The scout service placed an orbital research station there and sent three scout ships to explore this world. The station has gone silent and none of the scout ships have returned.
The Frontier Scouts want an expedition to find out some answers to the following questions:
Expore the planet. What type of atmosphere does it have if any?
Do a mineral and geological survey
Take soil samples
Are there alien ruins there?
Are there any forms of life there? Does anyone live there?
What happened to the orbital station?
What became of the scouts who never returned?