ExoExplo

Inspiration

One of the biggest factors that determines NASA's funding is public interest and support in NASA projects and space exploration. In order to garner public interest in space exploration, we have created a fun and education website for users of all ages to learn about exoplanets and space exploration, and allows users to find their perfect planet.

What it does

ExoExplo is a website that allows users to explore over 4000 exoplanets in our universe and learn fun facts about them, such as their habitability. Users can also search for exoplanets based on their own interests to find the perfect planet for them.

How we built it

Using the NASA Exoplanet Archive, we pulled data on over 4000 known exoplanets and created a website to pull from our database of planets and see information about them, including a habitability score we calculated for each exoplanet. We also implemented a semantic search feature using the OpenAI API so users can search for exoplanets with conditions that fit their own niche interests.

Challenges we ran into

One challenge we ran into was calculating the habitability score of an exoplanet, as the only datapoint for habitable planets we have is Earth. However through extensive research on what conditions are necessary for humans to survive and thrive, we were able to come up with a way to calculate a habitability score for exoplanets that was supported by NASA's finding on which exoplanets are the most likely habitable by humans.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

By implementing a semantic search feature for our website, we allow users to look for exoplanets that fit their own personality and interests, in order to personalize space exploration and cultivate a closer connection with space exploration and make these far off exoplanets feel a little more closer and interesting to the public.

What we learned

Through this endeavor, we learned a lot about how vast the universe is and how amazing human life is, and how space is something we will never truly be finished exploring.