Posted by Gordon Cheyne

Duane Hamacher is a western-trained astronomer who has worked with First Nations people for many years.

His book, “The First Astronomers”  explains the rich knowledge of the stars and the planets held by First Peoples around the world. 




Duane explained how modern societies have lost the habit of learning the patterns of the sky, and people have lost the sense of intimate connection with the land. We no longer understand how the stars predict shifts in weather, the seasons, and the seas. Nor do we know how to use the sun and the stars to pick the best times for planting and harvesting on our own land, how to identify where and when to fish, how to anticipate animal behaviour, and how to navigate the oceans. 

In traditional cultures, the elders are expert observers of the sky. Whichever part of the world they come from, they teach that everything on the land is reflected in the sky, and everything in the sky is reflected on the land.
 

Duane took us on a journey across the skies and through deep time, to reveal the wisdom of the first astronomers. He showed us that the knowledge of the ancients is a genuine science, and that First Nations people today hold precise knowledge of movements and relationships between celestial bodies over decades and even centuries that are not yet understood by modern western astronomy. Observation of the night sky provided knowledge of what is on earth.Traditional science is also dynamic, adapting to changes in the skies and on earth as they occur, pointing the way for a world facing profound disruptions.

In particular, Duane’s slides caught our attention: from defining “Science” and the various pathways to knowledge from mythology and folklore to observation and experimentation. He revealed how aborigines knew the earth was round and could calculate differences in latitude. By reading the position of the stars they could predict events such as eclipses, and using the atmospheric effects of haloes to predict weather. Their observation of the phases of the moon provided a knowledge of the tides.

We were amazed to learn that they knew about pulsating stars before western civilisation did, and that the “Dark Emu in the Sky” (a dark area adjacent to the Milky Way) is known to several cultures around the world under different names. 

Duane’s talk was followed by several probing questions, relating to the use of the hand to find cardinal points and latitude, and the gathering of mythology, belief and observation to arrive at knowledge. While the Laws of the Universe exist, he maintained, the paths to discovery may differ. A question regarding Stonehenge brought out the difficulty in retrospectively ascertaining the exact functions of ancient structures. Similarities in the beliefs of different cultures are commoner than differences, he said, as cultures in different parts of the world used twinkling stars to predict weather, and knowledge of the dark bird in the sky is common to several. The need for including this ancient knowledge in our current teaching was brought out.

In thanking Duane for his dissertation, David Rush said that parts of it were “dumbfounding”. Our members certainly gained insight from his talk, and will keep an eye open for his book appearing on the shelves. 

 

Duane Hamacher is Associate Professor of Cultural Astronomy in the School of Physics at the University of Melbourne. He earned graduate degrees in astrophysics and the social sciences and has appeared on TEDx, The Story of God with Morgan Freeman, and many other high profile local and international programs. He serves as an expert consultant for UNESCO and works for Indigenous elders in the Torres Strait and around the world to document traditional star knowledge for educational programs and public understanding.

 

Comments on “The First Astronomers”

'This book marks a profound paradigm shift in our understanding of Indigenous scientific traditions, how they are transmitted, and their relevance to life today.' - Professor Marcia Langton, University of Melbourne

'A ground-breaking book of enormous scope.' - Brian Schmidt, Nobel Laureate in Physics

'A glimpse into Indigenous ways of reading landscapes reflected in the night sky through ancient processes of inquiry.' - Dr Tyson Yunkaporta, author of Sand Talk

'A wonderful combination of scholarship and poetry.' - Dr Annette S. Lee, Lakota astrophysicist

'Beautiful, engaging, and startlingly profound.' - Alan Duffy, Professor of Astrophysics