This interdisciplinary book aims to foster dialogue among astrophysicists, cosmologists, and experts from diverse fields, including history, archaeoastronomy, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, theology, and the arts. Originating from a unique conference organized by INAF–IASF of Palermo and the INAF Observatory in the same city, the book focuses on the intersection of astrophysical research and the humanities to elevate Cultural Astronomy, a field that explores how the study of the cosmos shapes human cultural evolution and bridges scientific and humanistic perspectives. The meeting sought to dispel misconceptions that Cultural Astronomy is merely another form of science popularization or is confined to ancient or indigenous astronomical sciences.
Instead, it emphasizes rigorous, cross-disciplinary research with methodologies spanning history, anthropology, modern sociology, and law.
This work aims to build collaborations between scientific and humanistic communities, integrating insights from university students to encourage future "amphibious" researchers skilled in both the hard sciences and the humanities.
In examining humanity’s relationship with the cosmos, this collection of essays highlights how advances in astronomy and astrophysics influence our awareness in both terrestrial and cosmic contexts. By analyzing the universe’s mysteries, researchers expand not only scientific and technological understanding but also contribute profoundly to human cultural and existential knowledge.

Angelo Adamo, PhD, Master in Science comunication, first Researcher-Technologist at INAF/IASF in Palermo, collaborates with the GraWitA group for gravitational wave research, the ASTRI group (High Energy Astrophysics) as observer, is part of the IAU Commission C5 and is the founder and P.I. of AsCultA: a group of researchers working on Cultural Astronomy topics. Alongside his institutional activity as an astronomer, he also works as a musician and illustrator/cartoonist. Graduated in Music for Multimedia Application, he has worked on about fifty CDs of different artists from the house, pop, rock, blues, jazz, classical scenes and has published seven CDs under his own name. He has published scientific and popular articles and, graduated in Comics Languages at the Academy of Fine Arts, he has illustrated other people's books, has created several popular astronomy comics and has written and illustrated by himself five popular science books: Pianeti tra le note. Appunti di un astronomo divulgatore (Springer, 2009); Storie di Soli e di Lune. Racconti di sogni, racconti di scienza (Giraldi, 2009); La pazza scienza (with L. Perri, Sironi, 2017); Stelle di neutroni, in the series Viaggio nell’Universo (RCS MediaGroup-Corriere della Sera, 2020); Domicili Cosmici. Lontani pianeti ai confini dello sguardo, (Codice Edizioni, 2022).

Alberto Cappi is an Associate Astronomer at the Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF), based at the Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio di Bologna, and visiting astronomer at the Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur in Nice. His main research interests include observational cosmology, the analysis of the large-scale structure of the Universe, and clusters of galaxies. He has participated in major European redshift surveys and is currently a member of the Euclid mission of the European Space Agency (ESA). He also studies the history of cosmology and the influence of this discipline on some important  literary works.  He contributes to science outreach through public lectures and articles.

Giangiacomo Gandolfi is a cultural astronomer with a background in astrophysics and science communication. He worked as a space scientist in Rome for Telespazio Srl and the National Research Council (CNR), and for many years as a lecturer at the Planetarium of Rome. He is now Head of the Library and Historical Archive, as well as Curator of the Astronomical and Copernican Museum of INAF–OAR. He is also responsible for heritage valorisation at INAF. Since 2024, he has been Vice-President of IAU Commission C4, 'Astronomy and World Heritage', and has recently been appointed Chair of the IAU Intercommission C3-C4-C5 Working Group DSASS, 'Discovering and Studying Artifacts, Sites, and Stories'. In recent years, he has focused on numerous historical projects, including the celebrations for the 550th anniversary of Copernicus and the 400th anniversary of Giandomenico Cassini. He is particularly interested in the interaction between the sky and human culture, especially its relationship with literature and theatre. He edited the literary anthology Piccolo Atlante Celeste (Einaudi, 2009), a collection of international short stories about the stars and the universe. He is a member of the IAU, SISFA and SEAC and has studied Cultural Astronomy in depth for the last ten years, carrying out research activities on astral representations in medieval, Renaissance and Baroque art.