Norah Head, New South Wales

Norah Head, originally known as Bungaree Noragh Point,[1] is a headland on the Central Coast, New South Wales, Australia, south of Newcastle and north of Sydney. The nearest suburbs are Noraville, Canton Beach and Toukley. Soldiers Beach is located in Norah Head. The suburb is home to a lighthouse with scenic views, which is also considered a venue for weddings. The Norah Head tidal rock pool next to the Cabbage Tree harbour is a popular destination for families with young children due to its sheltered location.[2]

Norah Head

Bungaree Noragh Point
Norah Head lighthouse, located on the headland
Norah Head
Location in New South Wales
Coordinates: 33°16′57″S 151°34′27″E
CountryAustralia
StateNew South Wales
MunicipalityCentral Coast Council

Lighthouse
Main article: Norah Head Light

The Norah Head Lighthouse was the last significant lighthouse built in New South Wales, a 27-metre (89 ft) tower, completed in 1903 with monetary assistance from the Hargraves family of Noraville after considerable numbers of ships foundered on the coast near the headland. Originally it was powered by a kerosene concentric wick lamp and still today it features a second order bivalve Fresnel lens[3] prism floating on a mercury bath. At first, the prism was rotated by descending weights, but the light was electrified in 1961 and fully automated in 1995. The light flashes once in 15 seconds, and is visible to 27 nautical miles (50 km), the focal plane is located at 46 metres (151 ft) AHD . For coastal shipping, two additional light signals are shown: a red light in the northeast sector, emitted from 39 metres (128 ft) above the sea and a green one towards southwest, emitted from 44 metres (144 ft); both are continuous.[3]

The former lighthouse keepers cottage (Head Keeper's separate cottage and two assistants semi-detached quarters) are maintained, and two of these are available for rent.[4]

Heritage listings

Norah Head has a number of heritage-listed sites, including:

World War II

Near the head, sea battles between the Japanese Navy and Merchant navy ships took place in World War II: Three ships were sunk, Nimbin, at 1,052 tonnes (1,035 long tons; 1,160 short tons), by a mine on 5 December 1940 and the fishing trawler Millimumul sank with the loss of seven men on 26 March 1941 when it trawled up a German mine laid by the mine ship Pinguin, as well as BHP's Iron Chieftain, at 4,812 tonnes (4,736 long tons; 5,304 short tons) by a submarine on 3 June 1942. The Age, at 4,775 tonnes (4,700 long tons; 5,264 short tons), was also attacked on the same day.

Geology

There are several unique landforms around the head. Immediately in front of the head there is a rock platform which was formed in the Permian to Triassic periods around 180 - 280 million years ago. In the platform there is a volcanic intrusion, a channel of darker rock running from one side of the platform to the other. The intrusion was created by waves quarrying a softer basalt lava flow out of the surrounding granite. The lava came from an ancient volcano, probably Mount Warrawolong to the west.[6]

Climate
Climate data for Norah Head, New South Wales
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 44.0
(111.2)		 39.7
(103.5)		 37.2
(99.0)		 33.6
(92.5)		 28.1
(82.6)		 24.8
(76.6)		 24.7
(76.5)		 29.4
(84.9)		 33.5
(92.3)		 36.5
(97.7)		 40.3
(104.5)		 40.7
(105.3)		 44.0
(111.2)
Average high °C (°F) 25.8
(78.4)		 25.9
(78.6)		 24.8
(76.6)		 22.8
(73.0)		 20.0
(68.0)		 18.0
(64.4)		 17.2
(63.0)		 18.8
(65.8)		 20.9
(69.6)		 22.4
(72.3)		 23.5
(74.3)		 24.7
(76.5)		 22.1
(71.8)
Average low °C (°F) 19.6
(67.3)		 20.0
(68.0)		 18.7
(65.7)		 15.8
(60.4)		 13.0
(55.4)		 10.9
(51.6)		 9.7
(49.5)		 10.5
(50.9)		 12.8
(55.0)		 14.7
(58.5)		 16.7
(62.1)		 18.3
(64.9)		 15.1
(59.2)
Record low °C (°F) 14.5
(58.1)		 13.9
(57.0)		 12.7
(54.9)		 7.9
(46.2)		 6.9
(44.4)		 5.3
(41.5)		 4.0
(39.2)		 4.6
(40.3)		 6.1
(43.0)		 8.5
(47.3)		 8.8
(47.8)		 11.2
(52.2)		 4.0
(39.2)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 78.5
(3.09)		 108.9
(4.29)		 105.8
(4.17)		 127.1
(5.00)		 153.1
(6.03)		 144.3
(5.68)		 94.3
(3.71)		 66.6
(2.62)		 64.6
(2.54)		 52.8
(2.08)		 100.5
(3.96)		 65.5
(2.58)		 1,162.8
(45.78)
Average precipitation days 12.3 11.9 13.0 13.5 13.6 13.5 11.4 9.0 11.3 10.4 12.9 11.2 144.0
Average relative humidity (%) 70 72 69 65 64 63 59 56 60 64 68 68 65
Source: [7]
  • Panoramic view
  • Merchant navy memorial
  • Beach off Norah Head
  • Rock platform off Norah Head
  • Looking back at the lighthouse from the rock platform
  • Fishing off Norah Head is a popular activity
  • Norah Head rockpool at high tide

References
  1. "Norah Head Lightstation Group (listing RNE1489)". Australia Heritage Places Inventory. Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.
  2. Norah Head - Central Coast Accessed 25 April 2011
  3. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Australia: New South Wales". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 21 July 2008.
  4. Australia’s iconic lighthouses, Australian Geographic, 26 July 2010
  5. "Norah Head Lightstation Precinct". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Office of Environment and Heritage. H01753. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  6. "Norah Head Lighthouse - buildings - Landforms". norahheadlighthouse.com.au. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2010.
  7. "Climate statistics for Australian locations". Retrieved 1 January 2014.
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