you don't get any explore or observation exp?

Seems kind of harsh.

The only thing that resets exploration and observation experience is discussing or quitting which then gives you the reward. As has been previously mentioned, you don't get anything for exploring/observing as a ghost.

And I wasn't a ghost in the area at all (gear came back to me directly when corpse decayed) and I'd never been in the area before at all so was looking around a good bit.

Just thought it was weird.

I've heard people say that sometimes they notice that when they quit, they don't see the echos about gaining XP, but when the login next, their TNL went down.

I have no clue if that's ever actually been the case, was a bug that is fixed, etc., but I thought I'd share.

I've never received experience for what I had explored pre-death if I ran to discuss while I was a still a ghost. If you wait until you are whole, you should receive something.

AFAIK, you get XP for all the things you saw and rooms you entered while NOT a ghost.

If you go back and continue exploring AS A GHOST, you don't get anything for what you do/see until you are corporeal again.

This is what prevents you from conveniently running through after you mob die while ranking or after a PK.

I don't think dying clears or resets the XP you've got queued (but not discussed for yet). If so, I'd call that a bug.