The Night Skies of Aboriginal Australia

Next date: Thursday, 10 July 2025 | 06:00 PM to 07:00 PM

Australia has been occupied by humans for at least 50,000 years, over this time Aboriginal Australians have accumulated a detailed knowledge of the heavens above. In this talk, I will give an introduction to Australian Aboriginal cultures and how their view of the night sky differs from the contemporary western view. Night sky stories of the northern hemisphere are very familiar to many people, however the stories that are indigenous to the southern skies are less well known. In this lecture, we will explore how knowledge of the night sky has been passed on through oral narration; dance; and artistic interpretation; in addition to the diversity in the way the stars and constellations are viewed by different groups.

About the presenter

Paul Curnow (B.Ed.) is a world-renowned educator and astronomer, and after 33-years is South Australia’s longest serving planetarium lecturer. In 2002, he served as a southern sky specialist for visiting U.S. and British astronomers who were in Australia for the total solar eclipse. After three decades of research, he is regarded as one of the world’s leading authorities on Australian Aboriginal night sky knowledge; and in 2004, he worked in conjunction with the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center Planetarium in Ohio, on the creation of a show that features Indigenous Australian stories of the night sky. Moreover, from 2018-2025, he has served as a consultant on Indigenous Astronomy for the Australian Space Agency.

In addition, Paul runs several popular courses for the public that focus on the constellations, planetary astronomy, meteoritics, historical astronomy and ethnoastronomy, which primarily deals with how the night sky is seen by non-western cultures. He appeared as the keynote speaker at the inaugural 2010 Lake Tyrrell Star Party in Sea Lake, Victoria and in 2011 was a special guest speaker at the Carter Observatory in Wellington, New Zealand. Since 2012 Paul has taken the role of Lecturer for the ‘Astronomy & the Universe’ course (EDUC2066); and between 2019-2021 for ‘Science’ (EDUC 2030) for the School of Education at the University of South Australia. He has been a member of the Field Geology Club of South Australia since 1992.

Moreover, from 2021-2024 was an advisor for the Andy Thomas Space Foundation Education Advisory Committee; and in 2023 completed a U.S. lecture tour, where he was a special invited guest speaker at several planetariums, colleges, and universities. Paul appears regularly in the media and has authored over 50 articles on astronomy.

Ages: All ages

To book your place via the widget below:

• choose the number of people you're booking for and click "select"
• click the time of the event
• log in / sign up
• you're all booked!

When

Location

West Torrens Auditorium, 1 Brooker Terrace, Hilton, 5033, View Map