Wilfred Buck is a science facilitator at the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre and an Indigenous

star lore Star lore or starlore is the creating and cherishing of mythical stories about the stars and star patterns (constellations and asterisms); that is, folklore based upon the stars and star patterns. Using the stars to explain religious doctrines ...

expert. A member of the

Opaskwayak Cree Nation The Opaskwayak Cree Nation (; OCN, Cree: ᐅᐸᐢᑿᔭᐠ , ''opâskwêyâhk'', meaning: at the wooded narrows) is a First Nations band government in Manitoba, Canada. Most of the on-reserve population lives near The Pas on the OCN 21E reserve ...

, Buck is known as "the star guy" due to his knowledge of First Nations astronomy. He has researched and consulted with elders to learn more about the astronomical knowledge of

Cree The Cree ( cr, néhinaw, script=Latn, , etc.; french: link=no, Cri) are a Indigenous peoples of the Americas, North American Indigenous people. They live primarily in Canada, where they form one of the country's largest First Nations in Canada ...

Ojibway The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

, and

Lakota Lakota may refer to: *Lakota people, a confederation of seven related Native American tribes *Lakota language, the language of the Lakota peoples Place names In the United States: *Lakota, Iowa *Lakota, North Dakota, seat of Nelson County *Lakota ...

peoples.

Early life and education

Buck grew up in northern

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

on the Opaskwayak Cree Nation, near Saskatchewan. He developed his loved of astronomy at a young age and has described being "totally blown away by the immensity" of the night sky as a child. As a teenager, he spent time homeless on the streets of

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. Cree elders invited him back to Manitoba, and he learned about Cree culture. He has a

Bachelor of Education A Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) is an undergraduate professional degree which prepares students for work as a teacher in schools. In some countries such as Tanzania and Kenya, additional tasks like field work and research are required in order for ...

and postbaccalaureate education from the University of Manitoba.

Career

Buck began working at the Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre as a science facilitator around 2008. His mandate in the role was to "put the First Nations perspective into science"; consulting with elders, he realized he instead needed to put science into a First Nations perspective. He began using the stars, "atchakosuk" in Cree, as a way to learn more about the scientific knowledge of the Ininewuk (Cree) people, Lakota people, and the Anishinaabe (

) people. Using two portable dome-shaped planetariums, Buck teaches First Nations students about the stars visible in the night sky. He tours the planetariums to the 55 band-operated schools in Manitoba, projecting constellations onto the dome and sharing stories about each. Students refer to him as "the star guy". In his work, Buck discusses the deep knowledge that First Nations people had about astronomy: not just naming constellations, but using their observations to contemplate topics such as

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount (lexicographer), Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in ...

and

quantum physics Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, qua ...

. Along with indigenous astronomer Annette S. Lee, Buck was a co-curator of the "One Sky, Many Astronomies" exhibit at Ottawa's

Canada Science and Technology Museum The Canada Science and Technology Museum (abbreviated as CSTM; french: Musée des sciences et de la technologie du Canada) is a national museum of science and technology in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The museum has a mandate to preserve and promote ...

, featuring constellations of Canada's indigenous cultures. He served as a storyteller and content expert in the 22-minute film "Legends of the Night Sky," shown on the planetarium of Telus World of Science in Edmonton. Buck has gathered more than two dozen star stories from indigenous elders around Manitoba. In 2016, in collaboration with members of the Native Skywatchers initiative, Buck and partners Annette Lee and William Wilson created a native sky map, ''Ininew Achakos Masinkan'', an artistic rendition of Cree constellations in

planisphere In astronomy, a planisphere () is a star chart analog computing instrument in the form of two adjustable disks that rotate on a common pivot. It can be adjusted to display the visible stars for any time and date. It is an instrument to assist ...

format. He is one of the co-organizers of the first Indigenous Star Knowledge Symposium, scheduled to be held in 2021 in Ottawa and featuring indigenous knowledge keepers from around the world.

NameExoWorlds contest

In 2019, the

International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...

(IAU) celebrated its 100 year anniversary. As part of the centenary celebrations, the IAU ran the

NameExoWorlds NameExoWorlds (also known as IAU NameExoWorlds) is the name of various projects managed by the International Astronomical Union (I.A.U.) to encourage names to be submitted for astronomical objects, which would later be considered for official ad ...

contest. As part of this contest, the IAU assigned a star with an

exoplanet An exoplanet or extrasolar planet is a planet outside the Solar System. The first possible evidence of an exoplanet was noted in 1917 but was not recognized as such. The first confirmation of detection occurred in 1992. A different planet, init ...

to each participating country. Astronomers in each country ran a contest where members of the public were invited to propose a set of names for the star and exoplanet. Canada's contest was run by the

Canadian Astronomical Society The Canadian Astronomical Society (CASCA; french: link=yes, La Société Canadienne d'Astronomie) is a Canadian society of professional astronomers, founded in 1971 and incorporated in 1983. The society is devoted to the promotion and advanceme ...

(CASCA). The IAU assigned Canada the star HD 136418 and its exoplanet HD 136418b, and over 500 pairs of names were submitted in the contest. Since many Indigenous names were proposed, Wilfred Buck was asked to review the proposals, in particular one proposal to use the names for mother and child in the Cree language made by teacher Amanda Green. Wilfred Buck made some changes to her original proposal, and the final names chosen for the star and exoplanet were Nikawiy for the star and Awasis for the exoplanet. CASCA credits both Green and Buck for the pair of names.

Books

Buck is the author of the 2018 book ''Tipiskawi Kisik: Night Sky Star Stories'', an exploration of the night sky from a Ininew (Cree) perspective.

References

External links

3-minute video "Cree Legend of the Star People" from CBC/Radio-Canada
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buck, Wilfred Living people University of Manitoba alumni Science communicators Cree people Year of birth missing (living people)