User Guide

Welcome to LARUN.SPACE! This guide will help you discover exoplanets using our AI-powered detection system. No astronomy degree required.

What is LARUN?

LARUN (Light Analysis Research Utility Network) is a federation of TinyML models designed to detect exoplanets in NASA telescope data. Each model specializes in a different aspect of astronomical analysis, from transit detection to stellar classification.

First Steps

1. Create an Account (Optional)

Free users can analyze up to 10 targets per month. Create an account to:

Save your analysis history
Access advanced features
Get API access for programmatic use
Join the community of citizen scientists

2. Navigate to the App

Click Get Started to open the chat interface. This is where all the magic happens.

3. Choose Your Target

You can search for any star observed by NASA's TESS or Kepler missions. Common identifiers:

TIC ID: TESS Input Catalog (e.g., TIC 307210830)
KIC ID: Kepler Input Catalog (e.g., KIC 8462852)
TOI: TESS Object of Interest (e.g., TOI-700)
Common Name: Some stars have names (e.g., TRAPPIST-1)

Chat Interface

LARUN uses a conversational interface. Simply type what you want to do in natural language.

Example Commands

# Search for transit signals
"Search for transits in TIC 307210830"
"Analyze TIC 12345678 for planets"
"Look for periodic dips in TOI-700"

# Get stellar information
"What type of star is TIC 307210830?"
"Tell me about the host star"
"Is this a red dwarf?"

# Habitability analysis
"Is this planet in the habitable zone?"
"Could this planet have liquid water?"
"Calculate equilibrium temperature"

# Generate reports
"Create a report for this candidate"
"Generate PDF summary"
"Export my results"

Understanding the Response

When you analyze a target, LARUN will:

Fetch Data: Download light curve from NASA archives
Preprocess: Clean the data, remove outliers, detrend
Detect: Run TinyML models to find transit signals
Analyze: Fit parameters, estimate planet properties
Report: Present results in an easy-to-understand format

Understanding Results

Key Parameters

Parameter	Description	Example
Period	Time for one complete orbit (days)	3.42 days
Depth	How much the star dims during transit (%)	0.23%
Duration	How long the transit lasts (hours)	2.5 hours
SNR	Signal-to-noise ratio (higher is better)	12.4
R_p	Planet radius (Earth radii)	1.8 R_Earth
FPP	False Positive Probability (lower is better)	0.02

Disposition Categories

VALIDATED

FPP < 1%. Very likely a real planet. Suitable for follow-up.

CANDIDATE

FPP 1-50%. Promising signal that needs more analysis.

LIKELY_FP

FPP > 50%. Probably an eclipsing binary or other false positive.

Transit Search Workflow

The most common workflow is searching for transit signals in a star's light curve.

Enter Target ID

Type: "Search for transits in TIC 307210830"

View Light Curve

LARUN displays the raw and detrended light curve

BLS Analysis

Box Least Squares detects periodic dips

TinyML Detection

Neural network confirms transit signal

Parameter Fitting

Transit model fitted to derive planet properties

Candidate Vetting

Not every transit signal is a real planet. LARUN helps you vet candidates:

False Positive Scenarios

Eclipsing Binary (EB): Two stars orbiting each other
Background EB: Distant binary blended with target star
Hierarchical EB: Binary companion to the target star
Stellar Variability: Starspots, pulsations, flares

Vetting Commands

"Calculate false positive probability"
"Check for secondary eclipse"
"Look for odd-even depth differences"
"Analyze centroid motion"

Habitability Analysis

Once you've found a candidate, LARUN can assess its potential habitability.

What We Calculate

Habitable Zone Boundaries: Inner and outer edges where liquid water could exist
Equilibrium Temperature: Expected surface temperature
Insolation: Amount of stellar radiation received
Atmospheric Retention: Can the planet hold an atmosphere?

"Is this planet in the habitable zone?"
"What is the equilibrium temperature?"
"Compare to Earth's habitability"

Report Generation

Generate publication-ready reports for your discoveries.

Report Contents

Target overview and stellar parameters
Light curve plots (raw, detrended, phase-folded)
BLS periodogram with detected periods
Transit model fit and residuals
Planet parameter estimates with uncertainties
Habitability assessment
False positive analysis
Recommendations for follow-up

Export Formats

HTML: Interactive web report
PDF: Print-ready document
JSON: Machine-readable data
CSV: Spreadsheet-compatible tables

Using Custom Data

You can upload your own light curve data for analysis.

Supported Formats

FITS: Standard astronomical format (.fits)
CSV: Comma-separated values (.csv)
TXT: Space-separated text (.txt)

CSV Format Example

time,flux,flux_err
2458765.0,1.00023,0.00012
2458765.1,0.99987,0.00011
2458765.2,0.99234,0.00013
...

Data Requirements

Time in BJD (Barycentric Julian Date) or relative days
Flux normalized to ~1.0
At least 1000 data points recommended
Cadence of 2 minutes or better for small planets

API Access

Pro and Scientist tier users get API access for programmatic analysis.

Getting Your API Key

Sign in to your account
Go to Settings > API Keys
Click "Generate New Key"
Copy and store securely

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.larun.space/v1/pipeline \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "tic_id": "307210830",
    "full_report": true
  }'

See the API Documentation for complete reference.

Batch Processing

Analyze multiple targets at once (Scientist tier only).

Batch Commands

"Analyze TIC 1, TIC 2, TIC 3"
"Run pipeline on TOI-700, TOI-1338, TOI-1452"
"Process all targets in my list"

Uploading a Target List

Upload a CSV file with one TIC ID per line:

Ready to Start Discovering?

Jump into the app and find your first exoplanet candidate!

Launch LARUN App