By Gaurab Chhetri - Hackathon Project
Beyond Blue - An AI-powered platform to explore exoplanets
Beyond Blue is an AI-powered platform that predicts exoplanets using NASA data and lets you explore them in a social media–style feed with AI-generated stories and summaries.
Beyond Blue is an AI-powered platform that brings space exploration to everyone. Built during RiverHacks 2025, it lets users explore NASA’s exoplanet catalog1 through a sleek, social media-style interface enriched with AI-generated summaries and planet stories.
Instead of browsing spreadsheets of astrophysical data, users can experience each planet as a living narrative, complete with discovery context, classification, and AI insights.
🚀 Inspiration
The idea for Beyond Blue started with a simple question:
“What if discovering exoplanets felt as intuitive and engaging as scrolling a feed?”
Exoplanet datasets are fascinating but inaccessible to most people. Our goal was to humanize scientific data using storytelling, AI, and thoughtful design, making astronomy exploration interactive and fun.
🪐 Highlights
- AI Summaries: Automatically generated planet descriptions and narratives.
- Smart Filters: Search by discovery method, distance, size, and year.
- Interactive Feed: Explore planets like browsing cosmic posts.
- ML Classifier: Predicts whether a candidate is a real exoplanet using observational data.
🌠 The RiverHacks Journey
We built Beyond Blue in 24 hours; from brainstorming to deployment. Each team member took on key roles across data processing, model training, and frontend design.
Despite sleepless coding sessions, we built a working prototype that blended machine learning, storytelling, and user experience into one cohesive platform.
🏅 Winner – Bold Innovation in Search & AI Track
Awarded $1,000 for advancing AI-powered data exploration.
⚙️ Tech Stack
| Layer | Technologies |
|---|---|
| Frontend | Next.js, React, Tailwind, Radix UI |
| Backend | Node.js (Express), TypeScript |
| AI/ML | FastAPI, scikit-learn (Random Forest) |
| Dataset | NASA Exoplanet Archive |
💬 Reflection
Beyond Blue reminded us that creativity thrives under pressure. In just one night, we transformed complex data into a human-centered AI experience, a small step toward making science feel personal and alive.
👨🚀 Team
Built with an incredible group of collaborators:
Amul Poudel2, Binod Dhakal3, Rastrabhusan Dahal (Hritik)4, Samar Ranjit5, Sudin Katuwal6.