From ancestral knowledge to science” at the women-friendly planetarium in Ravenna – Union of Italian Amateur Astronomers – APS

Edited by Daria Dall'Oglio and Paolo Morini

“The Women-Friendly Planetarium is a project born within the Municipal Planetarium of Ravenna, a public institution managed on the basis of a regular agreement byRavenna Association of Amateur Astronomers Rhyta APS, delegation of the Union of Italian Amateur Astronomers.

The opportunity to hold a public meeting entitled “The Feminist Universe: From Ancestral Knowledge to Science” on January 16, 2024 was made possible by the presence, during the Christmas holidays, of Dr. Ariana Cortesi, Ph.D., in Ravenna, also from Ravenna and an astrophysicist, researcher and professor. Mathematical Physics at the University of Rio de Janeiro. The theme of the evening was illustrated by a very exciting and suggestive track.

Thanks to the planetarium, it was possible to transport the audience on a journey between the two celestial hemispheres. Beginning with the well-known polar constellations of the Northern Hemisphere, such as Cassiopeia and Ursa Major, Orion, the champion of the winter sky of this period, was identified, finally reaching his celestial opponent, Scorpio, these days low on the horizon before the dawn of the year. At this point, the journey south began, leading the public to the lesser-known (but very famous) constellations Centaur and the Southern Cross.

Thanks to the unusual height of the constellation Scorpius compared to what it appears at our latitudes, the constellation Emma has been described.

Emma, ​​in Italian Nando, is a large ostrich-like bird that lives in South America. Emma is a large constellation, which does not appear among the 88 constellations in the International Astronomical Union, but is present in the folk astrological traditions of many indigenous peoples of South America which include parts of Scorpio. , the centaur, the southern cross, the wolf, the altar, the southern crown, and the southern triangle.

The story of the Star Woman, recovered from indigenous Brazilian culture and illustrated with beautiful drawings produced by the indigenous people themselves in an IAU cross-cultural project, was told by Dr. Cortesi, who concluded her speech by summarizing the biographies of the world's greats. Women astronomers like Henrietta Leavitt, Vera Rubin, and Jocelyn Bell, who have come down to our time, recount the work of my fellow Brazilian astronomer, Dr. Denise Gonsalves, on planetary nebulae. The narration was accompanied by evocative music produced by Federica Maglione and Francesco Tiedi, whose harmonies essentially contributed to creating an atmosphere that can only be described as magical.

Mosaic logo of the women-friendly planetarium

The core partners of this initiative, as in all other initiatives of the Women-Friendly Planetarium, are activists of the Linnea Rosa Anti-Violence Association.

The Linea Rosa Association gave life to the solidarity project “Ravenna, a women-friendly city”, thanks to which citizens and institutions can contribute to creating a welcoming atmosphere by installing mosaics on the walls of their homes, shops or institutions with a flower. These paintings represent the spirit of a city and a civil society that wants to be women-friendly, and Linia Rosa translates this same spirit into concrete actions for women who need protection and protection. ARAR, in collaboration with Linea Rosa, created the first and only painting in the world titled “Women-Friendly Planetarium”, a symbol of the civic commitment that ARAR works to develop and promote science and STEM-related careers for women through various meetings and initiatives, with the aim of achieving equality between… Genders.

From left to right: Federica Maglione, Silvia Satanassi, Ariana Cortesi, Daria Dall'Oglio, Gaia Mariani.

Francesco Teddi and Federica Maglioni