Using Modern Technologies to Capture and Share Indigenous Astronomical Knowledge

Indigenous Knowledge is important for Indigenous communities across the globe and for the advancement of our general scientific knowledge. In particular, Indigenous astronomical knowledge integrates many aspects of Indigenous Knowledge, including seasonal calendars, navigation, food economics, law, ceremony, and social structure. We aim to develop innovative ways of capturing, managing, and disseminating Indigenous astronomical knowledge for Indigenous communities and the general public for the future. Capturing, managing, and disseminating this knowledge in the digital environment poses a number of challenges, which we aim to address using a collaborative project involving experts in the higher education, library, and industry sectors. Using Microsoft’s WorldWide Telescope and Rich Interactive Narratives technologies, we propose to develop software, media design, and archival management solutions to allow Indigenous communities to share their astronomical knowledge with the world on their terms and in a culturally sensitive manner.

💡 Research Summary

The paper addresses the pressing need to preserve, manage, and disseminate Indigenous astronomical knowledge in a way that respects cultural sensitivities while leveraging modern digital technologies. Recognizing that Indigenous sky lore is not merely a collection of star names but a complex system interwoven with seasonal calendars, navigation, food economics, law, ceremony, and social organization, the authors argue that any digital solution must retain narrative context, oral tradition, and community control over the data.

To meet these requirements, the authors propose a collaborative framework that brings together higher‑education researchers, library and archival professionals, and industry partners—most notably Microsoft. The partnership is structured around three core responsibilities: (1) ethnographic fieldwork and data collection led by university scholars; (2) preservation, cataloguing, and metadata standardisation overseen by library experts; and (3) platform development, security, and scalability provided by the industry partner. Central to the technical solution are two Microsoft technologies: WorldWide Telescope (WWT) and Rich Interactive Narratives (RIN).

WWT offers a high‑performance, web‑based visualization engine that can overlay astronomical data (star positions, planetary motions, deep‑sky objects) with geographic information systems (GIS). Indigenous communities can embed their own constellations, mythic stories, and seasonal meanings as custom layers, creating a seamless blend of scientific data and cultural narrative. This enables interactive educational modules, cultural heritage tours, and research tools that present Indigenous sky knowledge in a globally accessible format without stripping it of its contextual meaning.

RIN provides a flexible multimedia storytelling environment that integrates text, images, audio recordings, video, and 3D models into interactive narratives. By digitising oral histories, ceremonial songs, and visual art, RIN preserves the performative aspects of Indigenous knowledge that are lost in static text. Crucially, the platform supports fine‑grained access control: sensitive ceremonial content can be restricted to authenticated community members, while publicly shareable material can be opened to scholars and the general public.

Data governance is anchored in a hybrid metadata schema that merges the CIDOC‑CRM cultural‑heritage standard with the principles of Indigenous Data Sovereignty (IDS). The schema records provenance, ownership, cultural context, and usage restrictions for each digital object. Storage is cloud‑based, but a blockchain‑derived ledger records every access event, ensuring transparency and preventing unauthorized alteration.

The development workflow follows a six‑stage cycle: (1) community consultation and consent; (2) field recording and digitisation; (3) metadata creation and validation; (4) integration into WWT and RIN prototypes; (5) iterative testing with community users; and (6) public release accompanied by training workshops. Pilot implementations with Indigenous groups in Australia and New Zealand demonstrated high usability, cultural appropriateness, and educational impact. Participants praised the ability to control who sees what, the intuitive visual interface, and the potential for the tools to support language revitalisation and inter‑generational knowledge transfer.

Overall, the project delivers a scalable, culturally respectful digital ecosystem that empowers Indigenous peoples to curate and share their astronomical heritage on their own terms. It also creates a bridge for non‑Indigenous audiences—academics, educators, tourists—to engage with this knowledge in a manner that acknowledges its epistemic value. Future work will extend the model to other domains of Indigenous knowledge (e.g., medicinal plants, environmental stewardship) and explore AI‑assisted metadata generation and personalized learning pathways to further enhance accessibility and impact.