The moon moves into its last quarter phase this week, heralding a new moon on 17 July next week. In New Zealand, this means it is time for the celebration of Matariki. In Māori culture, this marks the new year and is a time of reflection for the previous 12 months and a chance to look ahead. The timing of the celebration is determined by the interplay of both stars and moon.
Matariki itself is the Māori name for the Pleiades star cluster. It disappears from the skies of New Zealand in May for around a month. When it is spotted again, rising in the dawn sky just before the sun, the festival of Matariki can begin once the moon reaches its next last quarter phase.
This year, the moon reaches last quarter on 10 July. Festivities proceed for a week and come to an end following the new moon. In 2021, the celebration was widely publicised and enshrined as a public holiday. This year the holiday takes place on 14 July. While the rest of us do not have a public holiday, we can still watch the moon traverse the final week of its cycle, rising later and later as the week goes on.
