Charcoal Night: Re-Imagining the Night Sky

'Charcoal Night' - is a short film documentary about re-imagining the night sky, created in partnership with students from the Albury Wodonga Community College, the Astronomical Society of Albury Wodonga (ASAW) and Murray Arts. The documentary was shown at various high profile venues across the Albury/Wodonga region during National Science Week. This project was made possible with a NSW Inspiring Science Australia Grant.

New University Course on Indigenous Astronomy

A new university course on Indigenous Astronomy will be taught at the University of New South Wales for the first time during Semester 1, 2014. The 3rd year course (ATSI 3006: Astronomy of Indigenous Australians) is worth 6 units of credit and is part of the new major in Indigenous Studies through the Nura Gili Indigenous Unit. It is one of 5 new courses on Indigenous Studies being developed for 2014. The new Indigenous Studies major was developed as a new way of teaching Indigenous Studies, which focuses on three themes:

1. 'Continuities' show the ways in which Indigenous people use their traditional knowledge and cultural systems to sustain their communities today;
2. 'Convergences, Ruptures, and Discontinuities' provide students with a variety of theoretical approaches for understanding the impact of colonisation on Indigenous peoples and communities;
3. 'Navigating the Interface' enables students learn and appreciate the complexities of knowledge production in Indigenous cultures.

Image by Paul Curnow and Gail Glasper.

ATSI 3006 focuses on the ways in which astronomical knowledge is developed, utilised, and encoded in the oral traditions and material culture of Indigenous peoples, with a focus on Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders. This course will introduce students to the growing inter-discipline of cultural astronomy and explore the astronomical knowledge and traditions of Indigenous Australians. Students will learn about the history, development, theory, and methods of cultural astronomy, followed by a conceptual (non-mathematical) treatise of positional astronomy and celestial mechanics using the new state-of-the-art planetarium at Sydney Observatory. Students will then explore the myriad ways in which the sun, moon, and stars inform and guide Indigenous practices such as navigation, calendar development, and food economics, as well as social structure, including customs, laws, kinship structure, and marriage/totem classes.

"Milky Way" bark painting by Mawalan Marika from Yirrkala, NT (1963). Australian Museum collection.

The teaching method is not focused on lecturing. Instead, short lectures will be followed by in-class activities, discussion groups, and field trips. Assessments are based on in-class activities, a research project, and an industry project. The latter involves working with a curator, astronomer, or educator to develop educational materials, curate an exhibit, develop an Indigenous astronomy program for a planetarium/observatory, or produce a media/art exhibit.

Students will also learn about opportunities to continue their study of Indigenous Astronomy through an Honours, Masters, or Doctoral program at UNSW.

Yuin elder Uncle Paul McLeod (right) teaches Nura Gili students about
traditional ecological knowledge at Jervis Bay. Photo by D. Hamacher.

But what if I am not majoring in Indigenous Studies - can I still take the course?

YES!

The course is available as a General Education unit (GenEd), meaning *any* student at UNSW that is eligible to enrol in a 3rd year course - regardless of their major - can take the subject, including foreign exchange and study abroad students.

About the Course Conveynor

Duane and Uncle Paul.

The course was developed, and will be taught, by Dr Duane Hamacher. Duane is a Lecturer and ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher at Nura Gili, specialising in Indigenous astronomy. Born and raised in the United States, he graduated with a degree in physics from the University of Missouri before moving to Sydney to complete a Masters degree in astrophysics at UNSW. He then earned a PhD in Indigenous Studies from Macquarie University with a thesis on Aboriginal Astronomy. Duane worked as an astronomy educator at Sydney Observatory for five years and is now a consultant curator. He has a passion for teaching and hopes to make this course one of the most engaging, interesting, and enjoyable courses students will have during their degree program.

Queries: d.hamacher@unsw.edu.au

Exploring Astronomical Knowledge and Traditions in the Torres Strait: A Project Supported by the Australian Research Council

In previous posts, we explored aspects of cultural astronomy in the Torres Strait. The indigenous people of these islands have a culture based on astronomy, yet the last major work on Islander astronomy was published in 1907. And even then the author clarified that his study was grossly incomplete. In the 1993 book "Stars of Tagai" by Nonie Sharp (Aboriginal Studies Press), she explained how Islander people were guided by Tagai - who is seen as a large constellation stretching from the Southern Cross to Corvus, down to Scorpius. Although the book contains important astronomical information, it is not about Islander astronomy and it does not shed light on Islander knowledge relating to the Milky Way, Magellanic Clouds, sun, moon, any of the planets, or other astronomical phenomena.

The constellation of Tagai, on which Torres Strait Islander culture is based.
Image credit: Nonie Sharp, 'Stars of Tagai: The Torres Strait Islanders', based
upon a watercolour by Lieut.G.Tobin, Mitchell Library, and drawings of the
Tagai Constellation by Gizu and Mariget of Mabuiag. 

This left a gap in our knowledge about cultural astronomy in the Torres Strait. Dr Duane Hamacher, a Lecturer in the Nura Gili Indigenous Programs Unit at the University of New South Wales, realised the importance of this work and the fact that Islander staff at Nura Gili have close connections with their home country. In March 2013, he applied for a research grant through the Australian Research Council called the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA). This highly competitive grant is designed to support researchers who are in the early stages of their academic careers (within 5 years of being awarded a PhD).

Dr Hamacher was successful and was awarded a DECRA to study Islander astronomy. The grant, worth $350,000, will cover the project over a period of three years.

Project Title: Exploring Astronomical Knowledge and Traditions in the Torres Strait

Project Description: The astronomical knowledge of Indigenous people across the world has gained much significance as scientists continue to unravel the embedded knowledge in material culture and oral traditions. As social scientists gain a stronger role in emerging scholarship on Indigenous astronomy, growing evidence of celestial knowledge is being rediscovered in artefacts, iconography, document archives, literature, folklore, music, language and performances. This project seeks to investigate an underexplored area of astronomical knowledge in Australia. It will be the first comprehensive study of the astronomical traditions of Torres Strait Islanders and will add to the growing body of knowledge regarding Indigenous astronomy.

This project will involve surveying over 1500 published documents on Islander culture, exploring archival documents in libraries, studying artefacts and artworks in museums across Australia and Europe, and conducting ethnographic fieldwork in the Torres Strait. This is where Dr Hamacher will live with Islander communities to learn firsthand from elders about their astronomical knowledge and practices. See the video below about current efforts to explore and record Islander astronomy in the Torres Strait.

   

Special Event: Corroboree Sydney

Four days of Indigenous cultural experience and interactions, including a talk on Aboriginal Astronomy by Professor Ray Norris.

Date: 16 November 2013 to 19 November 2013
Location: Australian Museum, Indigenous Australians: Australia’s First Peoples gallery

We're hosting four days of Indigenous cultural experience and interactions in our Indigenous Australians gallery. Our program aims to engage and educate audiences about Aboriginal heritage and culture, particularly in regards to NSW.

Come along for an opportunity to interact with Indigenous artists and cultural practitioners as they interpret objects and share insights into their cultures.

Talks

$20 each (bookings essential – click the links below)We're hosting four talks on Indigenous Australian culture, beliefs, heritage and history:

• The Native Institute – Karla Dickens and Leanne Tobin
  Sunday 17 November
  11.00am – 12.30pm
• The Biggest Estate on Earth: How Aborigines made Australia – Bill Gammage AM
  Sunday 17 November
  2.00pm – 3.30pm
• Aboriginal Astronomy – Ray Norris
  Tuesday 19 November
  Time 11.00am – 12.30 pm
• Connections: Dreaming stories and the rock art of Southern Sydney – Les Bursill OAM
  Tuesday 19 November
  Time 2.00pm – 3.30 pm

See more at: http://australianmuseum.net.au/event/corroboree#sthash.D4XHdgoB.dpuf

TEDx Perth: Science, Art, Reconciliation

Professor Steven Tingay, Curtin University, Perth

Aurorae in Australian Aboriginal Traditions

The Aurora Australis is seen by many Aboriginal groups as an omen of bushfires in the spirit world, according to a new study of traditional Indigenous oral culture.

The research found most traditional teachings associated the reddish hues of the Aurora Australis or southern lights, with blood, fire and death.

"That's very different from the more festive stories associated with the Aurora Borealis or northern lights, in the traditional cultures of Canada, Siberia and Northern Europe, says the paper's author Dr Duane Hamacher of the University of New South Wales.

Aurorae Australis over the oceans south of Victoria, Australia. Image by Alex Cherney
http://www.terrastro.com/wp-content/gallery/aurora-australis/aurora22jan2012_nex5.jpg

Read the rest of the story here.

Read the published paper here.

TEDx NorthernSydneyInstitute: Look Up! There's an Emu in the Sky

Dr Duane Hamacher, University of New South Wales, Sydney