Matariki is the Māori name for the cluster of stars which is also known as the Pleiades. Matariki is visible for eleven months of the year, disappearing in the lunar month of Haratua in May/June, and rising again around a month later, in the north-eastern skies, during the lunar month of Piripi. This usually occurs in late June or early July. It signals to Māori that the New Year will begin. Click on this image to find out more about it!