Working Group Astronomy in Culture (WGAC)/Commission C5 Cultural Astronomy
Tuesday, August 13th
08:30 to 10:00
Room 2.64 – 2.66
Business Agenda
08:30 – 09:00
Working Group Astronomy in Culture (WGAC)
Brief history
Past triennium summary of activity
WGAC handover to Commission C5
Commission C5 Cultural Astronomy
Rational
Objectives and future activities
Scientific Agenda
09:00 – 09:20
Ann Caroline Thresher
Responsible Siting: Initial Approaches and Advice from Other Fields
Telescope siting has, historically, relied entirely upon ensuring sites meet the technical specifications required for observation including weather, atmospheric clarity, accessibility, and cost of development. As the field is becoming increasingly aware, however, telescopes exist within a broader social context, and the choice of site needs to be responsive to ethical, cultural and environmental specifications just as much as technical ones. Fortunately, in engaging with these challenges astronomy need not re-invent the wheel – many other areas of science and technology have faced similar questions in their own projects, and we can look to them to help us formulate a set of best practices for the field. Here, I discuss why sites for astronomical facilities are often so environmentally and culturally challenging, including their common placement in remote, poor, and environmentally unique locations, and draw on lessons from parallel fields including genetic modification, nuclear science, paleontology, and conservation to provide an initial set of guidelines we can use when approaching siting within our own field.
09:20 – 09:40
Yasmin Catricheo Villagran
Mapuche Cosmovision of the Universe
The Mapuche people, one of the first nations in southern South America, have connected and interpreted the Milky Way, impacting the development of their culture. The recovery of their knowledge that initially has been transmitted through the speech of generations after generations, has now helped us to understand more the intense connection of the Mapuche people with everything that surrounds us.
09:40 – 10:00
Steven R. Gullberg
Inka Cosmovision: The Astronomical Legacy of an Andean Empire
The Inkas worshipped the Sun, and their emperor was thought to be the son of the Sun. They conquered most of the Andes and their former empire is replete with examples of their astronomy. They used solar positions on the horizon for calendrical purposes and managed their crops and religious festivals in this manner. Many examples remain of their intentional light and shadow effects that demonstrate their sophisticated understanding of the Sun’s movement and of solar horizon events. Evidence of their astronomy can only be fully understood in its cultural context, and Inka Cosmovision is explored through the cosmic worldview of the Inkas from the perspective of oral traditions passed from one generation to the next among the Quechua, the Inkas’ living descendants.
