Indigenous Astronomy and NavigationWestmead Hospital July 2018

Ray NorrisSchool of Computing, Engineering & Maths, Western Sydney University

& CSIRO Astronomy & Space Science

With special acknowledgement and respect to the traditional owners of this land,the elders past and present, the traditional owners of Australia,

and thanks to the Yolngu, Wardaman, Euahlayi and other groups who have helped and welcomed us.

The Sky in Ceremony

Wardaman senior elder Bill Yidumduma Harney

ArcturusMuninBig Rock cod

VegaJalalaTunnel

AltairBulyanWedge-tail Eagle

Bill Yidumduma Harney, Senior Wardaman elder

A search for Ancient Aboriginal Astronomy

Hundreds of years ago, did Aboriginal people: know the sky in detail?

predict when or where a celestial object would rise, (the “Stonehenge hypothesis”)?

make measurements orrecords of astronomical phenomena?

try to understand tides,eclipses, etc?

ScorpiusSouthern Cross

Coalsack

The emu in the sky

Sydney Rock engravings

More info: Google on “Sydney Rock Engravings”

Do the emu engravings

represent real emus, or the emu in

the sky?(Hugh Cairns ~1995)

This orientation occurs when the

real-life emus lay their eggs

(Late Autumn-Winter).

Additional circumstantial evidence that this engraving is an image of the “Emu in the Sky”:

•The Emu engraving site is an initiation site

•The Emu in the sky is associated with inititiation.

e.g. Kamilaroi initiation (“Bora”) ceremonies are held when the EMU is vertical

A view of Orion:

Rigel

Betelgeuse

Orion Nebula

A Southern view of Orion:

“The saucepan”

The Yolnguview of Djulpan

(Orion):Three brothers of the king-fish clan went hunting. Their ancestors are king-fish, so it is taboo to eat king-fish.

One brother caught and ate a king-fish.

The sun saw this, and created a waterspout that lifted them right up into the sky where you can still see them.

The Pleiades (seven sisters)

The Pleiades (seven sisters)

Djulpan

A Yolngu lady: “Seven sisters …come back with turtle, fish, freshwater snakes and also bush foods like yams and berries.”

“The stars come in season when the food and berries come out, … They give Yolŋu bush tucker, they multiply the foods in the sea –that’s why Yolŋu are happy to see them.”

The seven sisters (Pleiades)Kuwema people, NT: “You

see that mob of stars? We blackfellas call him Manbuk and all day he chases that mob of girls over there.”

In most Aboriginal cultures, the Sun is female

(e.g. Yolngu: Walu – the Sun-woman)

Phases of the Moon

Over the course of a month, the shape of the moon changes a little each day and rises a little later each day

Invisible “New Moon” for 3 nights

In most Aboriginal cultures, the Moon is a very bad, fat, man

(e.g. Yolngu: Ngalindi – the Moon-man)

• Many tell the story of how the Moon grew fat and lazy, and then became ill, and died.

• And then, after three days, he rose again to life.

Solar Eclipse(not to scale) Sun

Moon

Earth

Is there evidence of understanding the origin of eclipses?

Mrs Peggs (WA, 1900): “how will the natives react to a solar eclipse?”

Is there evidence of understanding the origin of eclipses?

Mrs Peggs (WA, 1900): “how will the natives react to a solar eclipse?”

Kunwinjku, NW Arnhem Land: Solar eclipse: The sun-woman is being

covered by the moon-man as they make love.

Lunar eclipse: The Sun is trying to chase and overtake him, but the moon always escapes.

Wirangu, central desert (via Daisy Bates): Solar eclipse: The Sun and Moon became “guri-arra” – husband and wife together

The Moon and the Tides• Sea rises and falls twice each day• Tides are more extreme at some times of the year

than at others

Galileo vs. the Yolngu

Galileo’s Greatest Blunder: The Moon and the Tides

Kepler: the tides are caused by the Moon

Galileo: “A lamentable piece of mysticism!”

Must be caused by the motion of the Earth round the Sun!

Compared it to water sloshing around in a barge.

Ignored the fact that his ideapredicted one tide per day.

The road to Yolngu Astronomy

The Yolngu explanation of the tides

At high tide, as the Full/new Moon passes through the horizon at dusk/dawn, it fills with water

When the moon is high in the sky at dusk/dawn (crescent Moon), it empties, leaving a low tide.

The Yolngu explanation of the tides

At high tide, as the Full/new Moon passes through the horizon at dusk/dawn, it fills with water

When the moon is high in the sky at dusk/dawn (crescent Moon), it empties, leaving a low tide.

Yolngu 1 Galileo 0

So there was astronomy. What about navigation?

Diagram from McCarthy (1939) 'Trade in Aboriginal Australia'. Oceania 9, 4

* Kerwin (2010) “Aboriginal Dreaming Paths and Trading Routes”

Trade routes have been known for decades. Only now are we starting to understand their significance *

“Red and yellow ochre from this area are considered very powerful and were traded for long distances.” #

#Lee & Harney (2009) Introduction to the Rock Art ofWardaman Country

How accurate are they?

Example: linear stone arrangements in NSW

How accurate are they?

Hamacher, Fuller, & Norris, 2012, Aust. Arch., 75, 46.

Many stone arrangements are accurately aligned north-south or East-West! How did Aboriginal people know these directions so accurately? From astronomical observations!

Wurdi Youang, Victoria

© NHK

Wurdi Youang, Victoria

Three large stones at

highest point

© NHK

Wurdi Youang, Victoria

Based on original suggestion by Morieson, 2003, World Archaeological Congress,Washington DC, 2003

From Norris et al., 2013, Rock Art Research, 30, 55

© NHK

So were these directions used for navigation?

Each night where we were going to travel back to the camp otherwise you don’t get lost and all the only tell was about a star. How to travel? Follow the star along*

-Bill has a detailed mental map of the sky, and knows how it changes through the night and through the year.

That’s Emu Foot tells you, he’s south. If you want to go south-west, you go on the right hand side of the emu…#

# Harney (2004) Dark Sparklers, p63* Harney (2009) at AIATSIS meeting on Aboriginal Astronomy

Why is Venus always low in the sky?

The Morning Star (Banumbirr) Ceremony

(from the Yolngu people)

Yarrapay

Pole

made b

y Ric

hard

Garr

aw

urr

a,

from

Elc

ho I

sland

“Every morning, in the right season, at the beginning of dawn, I will rise in the sky just before Walu, the Sun, makes

the sky glow with her light…the people will see my light in the sky, and see the pathway of light towards this place.”

Yolngu elder Gali dancing the Morning Star Ceremony, Elcho Island, May 2014

So where’s the rope?

Zodiacal light (caused by sunlight scattering of dust in the solar system)

Yolngu 1 Ray 0

A Euahlayi songline reflected in the sky(Fuller, Anderson, et al., 2014, JAAS, in press , based on traditional knowledge)

Zeta Scorpii

Carnarvon Gorge

Gamma Scorpii

Dirranbandi

Girtab

St George

SargasSurat

Eta Scorpii

Roma

ArkabGoodooga

NSW

Queensland

Gujingga songline by Bill Harney

Not just songline trail, walking trail, trade routes. You sing a song, then you follow your song, in that track you go along singing the song, like a blazed mark. (Dark Sparklers p. 63)

Many current-day highways are based on songlines

Kununurra

Darwin

Katherine

Port hedland

Marble Bar

A Darug songline from Sydney to the Blue Mountains

For more info:

Emu Dreaming

available from:

www.emudreaming.com

or

Amazon.com.au