SELECT * FROM sky

Inspiration

Astronomy and history courses often often don't teach you about constellations. There are many game-ified learning programs, (e.g. Duolingo) so why not make one for the stars?

What it does

Users are encouraged to get out of the house and stargaze, with each adventure earning them points. Users can upload their own pictures of the stars, and see which constellations are featured. The more a user learns about the stars, the more points they get! Users can also compete with their friends, trying to get more points, or show off their knowledge with badges.

How we built it

We used mySQL for the database, and springboot so we could use java to interact with the database. Our frontend was made with just html, css, and javascript. We used a couple APIs on the frontend, such as googles authentication API to handle authentication, and leaflet to use real world maps.

Challenges we ran into

Connecting frontend to the backend was very difficult, and especially so considering we only started this on Saturday evening. Additionally, learning how to use these APIs was definitely a challenge.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We're most proud of the constellations page. We created a python script to edit a folder full of constellation pictures to match our theme and colour palette.

What we learned

We gained a ton of firsthand experience moving data around. From frontend to backend to APIs, we learned how to make different parts of a system work together. We also learned a lot about constellations.

What's next for SELECT * FROM sky

We want to add more celestial events to Hello Stars, like eclipses, auroras, and meteor showers, as well as improved visuals. Our team is also interested in creating a gamified app for the gym, to log workouts and encourage people to work out consistently.