Planetary Institute: As an action, you can “downgrade” a research lab into a trading station and immediately advance one level in a research area of your choice. Advancing in a research area is explained on page 15. This counts as an “Upgrade to a Trading Station” action. You can later upgrade the trading station
back into a research lab using the normal rules (including gaining a new tech tile).
Planetary Institute: As an action, you can “downgrade” a research lab into a trading station and immediately advance one level in a research area of your choice. Advancing in a research area is explained on page 15. This counts as an “Upgrade to a Trading Station” action. You can later upgrade the trading station back into a research lab using the normal rules (including gaining a new tech tile).