Celebrating Matariki 2017!
The reappearance of the seven Matariki stars, in late May or early June, signals the beginning of the Māori New Year...However, not all iwi celebrate at the same time. Some may begin festivities on the first full moon after the star cluster rises, or on the next new moon.
Here at RTC we are celebrating Matariki with Hangi in Northland and in Auckland. 28 June in Auckland at our New Lynn Campus, and July 6th at our Ngararatunua Campus just north of Whangarei - all of current students, staff and clients are welcome!
However, how do you find the star cluster that is Matariki? The cluster is found low on the horizon in the north east of the sky. Try looking here between 5.30 a.m. and 6.30 a.m and follow these steps:
1. First find the pot (the bottom three stars of the pot are also called Tautoru, or Orion’s Belt). To find Puanga (Rigel) look above the pot until you see the bright star. To find Matariki, keep going.
2. To the left of the pot, find the bright orange star, Taumata-kuku (Alderbaran).
3. Follow an imaginary line from Tautoru (the bottom three stars of the pot), across to Taumata-kuku and keep going until you hit a cluster of stars.
4. That cluster is Matariki. If you have good eyes you should be able to pick out individual stars. If it looks fuzzy, look just above or just below and the stars will be clearer.
Ko te mea nui o tēnei ao. He tangata! He tangata! He tangata!