Sometimes I recall my explorers at night, just to be on the safe side. But in the morning, I realize that they have health and resources left to keep going, so I make them explore a little farther. The exploring path looks something like this:
<----------------------------------------------|vault
48h exploring
------------> |vault
6h returning (at double the exploring speed)
<------------ |vault
12h exploring
It's my understanding that explorers get better stuff (and also face tougher monsters) the longer they are in the wastes, but I'd like to understand better the effects of recalling an explorer and then sending them a bit further in the wastes. In my example above, what would be the resulting hike, in terms of loot quality? In terms of loot quality and monster strength, would the equivalent path be the same as if I had not recalled the explorer, just having paused the trip during the time they were returning? Like so:
<----------------------------------------------------------|vault
60h exploring
Or is the return trip taken into account? Like so:
<----------------------------------------------|vault
48h exploring
Has anyone experimented with this? If not, how would one set up an experiment to gather evidence on the subject? Does it matter?