"Aboriginal Australians: the World’s First Astronomers?", Professor Ray P. Norris

There are about 400 different Indigenous cultures in Australia, each with its distinct mythology, ceremonies, and art forms, many of which have a strong astronomical component. Several link their stories and ceremonies intimately with the sky, often in beautiful and fascinating ways, such as the “emu in the sky” constellation of dark clouds, and stories about the Sun, Moon, Orion, and the Seven Sisters. It has even been suggested that Aboriginal Australians, whose culture predates Stonehenge and the Pyramids by tens of thousands of years, may have been the world’s first astronomers.

Is this true? We are trying to answer this question, using information from two main sources.

One source consists of the thriving and vibrant Indigenous cultures in the Top End of Australia, whose culture embodies an intimate knowledge of the sky. For example, the beautiful “morning star ceremony” of the Yolngu people is timed for the rising of Venus. Elsewhere, Aboriginal tradition includes the knowledge that eclipses are associated with a conjunction of the Sun and Moon. Often the rising of particular stars or constellations were used to set the calendar, or warn when it's time to move on to gather a seasonal food.

The other source consists of the artefacts of Aboriginal people of South East Australia, whose cultures were badly damaged within a few years of European settlement. For example, the Sydney rock art has a strong element of astronomical symbolism, such as the emu engraving that seems to portray the “emu in the sky” rather than a real-life emu. Lunar crescents are common, and it has even been suggested that some markings are drawings of constellations of stars. One stone circle in Victoria appears to be oriented on the solstices and the equinox, and other examples appear to be carefully aligned on the cardinal points.

Aboriginal Astronomy is a new research field, but one which is rapidly growing, and perhaps helping us understand the depth and richness of Australian Indigenous cultures.

For further information, see Professor Norris' Wiki page.

Ray Norris is an astrophysicist at the CSIRO Australia Telescope National Facility (ATNF). Born in England in 1953, he obtained an MA in theoretical physics at Cambridge, followed by a PhD and postdoc in radioastronomy at Manchester, while also studying the astronomy of ancient standing stones. In 1983, Ray and his family fled the Manchester weather for the sunnier climes of Sydney, joining the ATNF as a research scientist, then Head of Astrophysics, and eventually Deputy Director. He was awarded an Honorary Research Professorship by the University of Tasmania in 1999, and an Adjunct Professorship by Swinburne University in 2000. In 2005, he left management to research the formation of the first galaxies in the Universe, and also the astronomy of Aboriginal Australians. He has about 200 academic publications and many media appearances. For relaxation, he writes, knocks down walls, and endures his wife’s injured possums. But not necessarily at the same time.