A/Prof Duane Hamacher

31/03/2026

02/03/2026

Get outside tonight and check out the lunar eclipse!

All of Australia will be treated to a "blood moon" tonight wherever the sky is clear. Here's how you can catch a glimpse of the last total lunar eclipse until 2029.

02/03/2026

A lunar eclipse ceremony from the Torres Strait turns our understanding of the history of science on its head.

16/02/2026

YOUR HELP NEEDED TO SAFEGUARD SKY COUNTRY from SpaceX and Reflect Orbital satellites.

Two satellite proposals of unprecedented scale and consequence are currently before the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the United States. They not only impact our view of the stars, they directly threaten Sky Country on an absolutely enormous scale.

SpaceX's application is to launch up to one MILLION satellites as part of an expansion of its artificial intelligence infrastructure.

Reflect Orbital's application is to deploy satellites fitted with in-space mirrors to beam reflected sunlight BACK to Earth at night.

We are advocates of DarkSky International and encourage you to submit a comment to the FCC. You can find more information, templates and a step-by-step guide in the link below:

https://darksky.org/news/two-satellite-proposals-threaten-the-night-sky-the-window-to-act-is-now/

Please note that DarkSky International's position does not oppose satellite technology. They recognise its role in today's world, but oppose unchecked expansion without responsible oversight and full environmental review when technologies pose a real threat to the global nighttime environment.

In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the agency responsible for authorizing satellite launches and operations…

09/02/2026

Free Public Talk!

Join us this Wednesday evening, 11 Feb at 8:00 pm in Mueller Hall in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens for a free public talk on Aboriginal Observations of Variable Stars by A/Prof Duane Hamacher, Director of The Burunh Program for Cultural & Indigenous Astronomy at The University of Melbourne.

The event is sponsored and hosted by the Astronomical Society of Victoria.

This talk will explore they ways we conduct research in Cultural and Australian Indigenous Astronomy, how we learn about astronomical knowledge encoded in oral tradition, and how we are able to understand these observations are describing variable stars, and what this means.

The talk is free and open to the public. We also have online options for those who cannot join us in person.

YouTube Link: https://www.youtube.com/user/AstroSocietyVic
Facebook Link: https://www.facebook.com/theasv
Twitch Link: https://www.twitch.tv/the_a_s_v

31/12/2025

The Burunh Program for Cultural & Indigenous Astronomy is offering courses at the The University of Melbourne in 2026! For Semester 1, we offer PHYC10010: Indigenous Astronomy.

This course will examine the science behind traditional star knowledges across Australia and the globe and will feature First Nations Elders and researchers as guest lecturers.

Enrol Now!

https://handbook.unimelb.edu.au/2026/subjects/phyc10010

25/12/2025

A new article in The Conversation about possible astronomical explanations of the Christmas Star, written with Jonti Horner and including a great photo by Peter Lieverdink.

Or perhaps there was no star at all.

26/11/2025

11/11/2025

ISAAC is opening nominations for Council, which includes four roles: Vice-President / President Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, and three Triennial Council Members.

30/10/2025

For anyone interested in learning more of the technical aspects of cultural astronomy - from tools, methods, theoretical frameworks and analytic approaches - we host a fortnightly Graduate Seminar Series at the University of Melbourne in Australia. You can watch videos of these seminars or join us online.

Seminar times, topics, speakers, schedules, and Zoom links can be found here:

https://blogs.unimelb.edu.au/culturalastronomy/wp-admin/post.php?post=1126&action=edit

You can watch the previous videos on our YouTube channel here.

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGxsEObAiUVYu3aRndeGy_wXCZ2xwMz1y&si=dslpPzTdtvsZYQCF

Ongoing seminar series targeted for graduate students and scholars working in the interdisciplinary field of Cultural & Indigenous Astronomy. This scholarshi...

24/06/2025

"Shifting the Culture of Astrophysics to be more inclusive of Indigenous Knowledges" by Duane Hamacher

De Laeter Colloquium - 19 June 2025

https://vimeo.com/1094627578

The de Laeter Colloquium series features distinguished national and international scientists as speakers, aimed at enhancing interaction between CSIRO, SKAO, the two ICRAR nodes, and high-profile centres of astronomical research around the world. It is an excellent opportunity for us to meet and discuss astronomy with prominent individuals.

Title: Indigenous community engagement by the Astro-Space Sectors

Abstract: As scientific communities and industries begin to grasp the need to collaborate and engage with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, various challenges regarding misinformation, expectations, worldviews, protocols, politics, and processes can impede progress and limit the capability of the Astro-Space Sector achieving meaningful change for mutual benefit. In this talk, cultural astronomer Duane Hamacher will explore some of these challenges with respect to the astronomical community in particular, exploring successes, failures, challenges, and new pathways to achieving a shared future.

Bio: Duane Hamacher is an Associate Professor in the School of Physics and Director of the Cultural & Indigenous Astronomy Program at the University of Melbourne. His work focuses on examining humanity’s connections with the stars in terms of history, culture, and science. For 17 years, he has been working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to learn more about the science of traditional star knowledge, having authored the best-selling book The First Astronomers with six Elders.

The de Laeter Colloquium series features distinguished national and international scientists as speakers, aimed at enhancing interaction between CSIRO, SKAO, the…