Each of the 400 different Aboriginal cultures in Australia has a distinct mythology, ceremonies, and art forms, some of which have a strong astronomical component. Many share common traditions such as the “emu in the sky” constellation of dark clouds, and stories about the Sun, Moon, Orion, and the Pleiades. Several use the rising and setting of particular stars to indicate the time to harvest a food source, and some link the Sun and Moon to tides, and even explain eclipses as a conjunction of the Sun and Moon.
These traditions reveal a depth and complexity of Aboriginal cultures which are not widely appreciated by outsiders. This presentation will explore the wonderful mystical Aboriginal astronomical stories and traditions, and the way in which these are used for practical applications such as navigation and harvesting. It also describes the journey of exploration which is opening Western eyes to this treasury of ancient Aboriginal knowledge.
Ray Norris is a British/Australian astronomer with CSIRO Astronomy & Space Science who researches how galaxies formed after the Big Bang. He also researches the astronomy of Australian Aboriginal peoples, for which he is an Adjunct Professor in Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University. He was educated at Cambridge University, UK, and moved to Australia in 1983 to join CSIRO. He currently leads an international project to image the faintest radio galaxies in the Universe, using the new ASKAP radiotelescope being built in Western Australia. He frequently appears on radio and TV, performs in a stage show called “The First Astronomers?”, and has recently published a novel, Graven Images.
www.mq.edu.au/leap
19 авг 2024
