In Nuenonne traditions of Bruny Island, Tasmania, the Sun is a man named Punywin and the Moon is his wife, Venna. In the beginning they travelled from horizon to horizon together, creating life on Earth before setting into the sea each night. But Punywin travelled too fast and Venna fell behind and rested on icebergs even though Punywin produced more and more light to encourage her to catch up. Tasmania was pushed away from the mainland and gradually rose from the seas to become the island we know today. These traditions describe how moonlight is reflected sunlight, and speaks back to a time when Tasmania was formed by rising seas at the end of the Ice Age, over 10,000 years ago.
The Moon and its phases feature in many Dreaming stories across Australia, describing the intangible relationship between the Moon, Sun and Earth. The Nuenonne traditions of the Moon woman are an example of astronomical observations embedded within culture. For many other Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, the Moon is a powerful man, often
