Indigenous astronomers share culture through storytelling

The connection Indigenous Australians have with the night sky is being communicated through the storytelling of a new generation of Indigenous astronomers.

For 60,000 years, Indigenous people formed a unique relationship with the land, but they also knew the sky.

Professor Ray Norris from Western Sydney University and the CSIRO says there is rich knowledge of the night sky embedded in the songs and stories of Indigenous Australians.

"We found that people thousands of years ago in Australia were clearly staring up at the sky wondering 'how the heck does that eclipse work'-- and sometimes they come to amazing conclusions," he told NITV.

"You read about this, you hear about this encoded in the songs and stories."

Wiradjuri woman Kirsten Banks has made it her career mission to share those stories.

Working as a tour guide at the Sydney Observatory, the physics student says it is a fascinating area of study.

"The thought that Indigenous Australians have used the sky as astronomers for tens of thousands of years, or even before anyone else, is awesome to me."

She plans on sharing the cultural knowledge as she trains to become an archeo-astrophysicist.

"I love that we have such a rich culture from this land and that they used the sky similar in ways that we use it now. It's just amazing," she said.

The Indigenous connection to the most famous Southern Hemisphere constellation, the Southern Cross, is explored in the documentary 'We Don't Need a Map' by Warwick Thornton. It is the first in a four-part series exploring Indigenous identity and culture.


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Source: SBS World News


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