<html><head><style type='text/css'>p { margin: 0; }</style></head><body><div style='font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 12pt; color: #000000'><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">S.A. Astronomical Observatory in Cape Town will host a "Cultural Astronomy of Aboriginal Australians" public talk on Friday, February 3 at 17h00. The talk will be presented by Duane W. Hamacher of the Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Bio: </span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Duane W. Hamacher is currently managing the Macquarie University Planetarium and
Observatory. Also, he is a member of the Aboriginal Astronomy Project, that is linked to the Research Centre of Astronomy, Astrophysics and
Astrophotonics. Accordingly, he holds a joint position between the Department of Indigenous
Studies (research) and the Department of Physics & Astronomy
(Outreach).</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">His research areas are in Australian Cultural Astronomy, Indigenous
Knowledge, History of Science, Observational Astronomy, Meteorite
Impacts, Science Education and Communication. His first degree is a
Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of Missouri. Followed by an M.S. in Astrophysics from the University of New South Wales. He has recently
submitted a PhD in Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University.</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-weight: bold; font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Abstract: </span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">The Cultural Astronomy of Aboriginal Australians</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Aboriginal
Australians are among the oldest continuous cultures on earth, having
arrived in Australia over 50,000 years ago. Threaded among the hundreds
of different groups, each with a distinct language and culture with a
deep knowledge of the night sky. This knowledge extends beyond simply
naming stars or having stories about them. It includes a deep
intellectual component that involved noting the complex motions of the
sun, moon, and stars. The relationship between meteors, meteorites, and
impact craters, the mechanics of eclipses, and the relative positions of
stars in the sky and their connection to terrestrial events, such as
the changing of seasons, the availability of food sources, and the
passage of time. Evidence of this is recorded with community elders and
in various artistic forms, such as stone arrangements and petroglyphs.
In this talk, Duane will explore the role and development of scientific
astronomy in Aboriginal cultures and discuss some of the amazing
research being conducted by members of the Aboriginal Astronomy
Project.</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Contact details : contact: duane.hamacher@mq.edu.au</span><br><br><br><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">-- </span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Regards</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Thembela Mantungwa</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">S.A. Astronomical Observatory</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Tel: 021 460 9319</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Fax: 086 612 7502</span><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"></span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Email: tm@saao.ac.za</span><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Website: www.saao.ac.za / www.salt.ac.za</span><br><span name="x"></span><br><br><br style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-weight: normal; font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br></div><br></div></body></html>