Cape Point.

Cape Point is a promontory at the south-east corner of the Cape Peninsula, which is a mountainous and very scenic landform that runs north-south for about thirty kilometres at the extreme southwestern tip of the African continent in the Republic of South Africa. Table Mountain and the city of Cape Town are close to the northern extremity of the same peninsula. The cape is located at 34°21′26″S, 18°29′51″E, about 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi) east and a little north of the Cape of Good Hope on the south-west corner.^[1] Although these two rocky and beautiful capes are very well-known, neither cape is actually the southernmost point in Africa; that is Cape Agulhas, approximately 150 kilometres (90 mi) to the south-east. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1312x975, 1474 KB) Summary Photo by Paddy Briggs Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1312x975, 1474 KB) Summary Photo by Paddy Briggs Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... The term promontory has several similar meanings in English, including geographical names: A promontory is a prominent mass of land which overlooks lower lying land or a body of water (e. ... The Cape Peninsula, also known as the Peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope, is a 75 km peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. ... A satellite composite image of Africa Africa is the worlds second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. ... For other uses, see Table Mountain (disambiguation). ... City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Helen Zille Area  - % water 2,499 km² N/A Population  - Total (2004)  - Density Ranked 100th 2,893,251 1,158/km² Established 1652 Time zone SAST (UTC+2) Calling code 021 edit Cape Town (Afrikaans: Kaapstad /ˈkɑːpstÉ‘t... A kilometre (American spelling: kilometer), symbol: km is a unit of length in the metric system equal to 1000 metres (from the Greek words χίλια (khilia) = thousand and μέτρο (metro) = count/measure). ... A mile is a unit of distance (or, in physics terminology, length) currently defined as 5,280 feet, 1,760 yards, or 63,360 inches. ... The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... The marker at Cape Agulhas The lighthouse which warned many ships of the cape Cape Agulhas is the geographic southern tip of the African continent. ...

Map showing the Cape Peninsula, illustrating the positions of the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point.

The peak above Cape Point is a little higher than that above the Cape of Good Hope. The rugged sandstone (Table Mountain sandstone) ridge that rises from Cape Point at sea level develops into two peaks. There is a major peak that dominates the skyline locally but there is also a smaller peak about 100 m further south. The higher peak has a lighthouse on the top. A funicular railway runs from a car park to the north up to slightly below the level of the lighthouse and a short flight of steps leads to a viewing platform at the base of the lighthouse. From the end of the railway a second path leads to the lower peak. Image File history File links CapeHopePeninsulaMap. ... Image File history File links CapeHopePeninsulaMap. ... The Cape Peninsula, also known as the Peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope, is a 75 km peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. ... The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... The Peggys Point lighthouse in Nova Scotia, Canada An aid for navigation and pilotage at sea, a lighthouse is a tower building or framework sending out light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire. ... Duquesne Incline, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with full length parallel tracks A funicular, also called funicular railway or inclined railway, inclined plane, or in England a cliff railway, consists of a system of transportation in which cables attach to a tram-like vehicle on rails to move it up and down a...

The light of the Cape Point lighthouse is the most powerful on the South African coast, with a range of 63 kilometres (39 mi) and an intensity of 10 million candlepower in each flash.^[2]

Both the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Point are situated within the Table Mountain National Park, the Cape Point section of which occupies the whole of the southern tip of the Cape Peninsula and which takes in perhaps 20% of its total area. The park is generally wild, unspoiled and undeveloped and is an important haven for seabirds. Table Mountain National Park, previously known as the Cape Peninsula National Park, is a national park in Cape Town, South Africa, proclaimed on May 29, 1998 for the purpose of protecting natural environment of the Table Mountain Chain, and in particular the rare fynbos vegetation. ...

View over Cape Point; the lighthouse's white dome is just visible. The Cape of Good Hope is behind the camera.

Cape Point is often mistakenly claimed to be the place where the cold Benguela Current of the Atlantic Ocean and the warm Agulhas Current of the Indian ocean collide. In fact, the meeting point fluctuates along the southern and southwestern Cape coast, usually occurring between Cape Agulhas and Cape Point. The two intermingling currents help to create the micro-climate of Cape Town and its environs. Contrary to popular mythology, the meeting point of the currents produces no obvious visual effect; there is no "line in the ocean" where the sea changes colour or looks different in some way. There are, however, strong and dangerous swells, tides and localized currents around the point and in adjacent waters. These troubled seas have witnessed countless maritime disasters in the centuries since ships first sailed here. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (552x736, 88 KB) Cape Point, near Cape Town, South Africa. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (552x736, 88 KB) Cape Point, near Cape Town, South Africa. ... The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... The frigid waters of the north-flowing Benguela current move from the Southern Ocean that surrounds Antarctica along the west coast of Africa as far as Angola. ... The Agulhas Current is the Western Boundary Current of the South-West Indian Ocean and is part of the westward-flowing South Equatorial Current. ... The marker at Cape Agulhas The lighthouse which warned many ships of the cape Cape Agulhas is the geographic southern tip of the African continent. ... Categories: Stub | Ecology ... City motto: Spes Bona (Latin: Good Hope) Province Western Cape Mayor Helen Zille Area  - % water 2,499 km² N/A Population  - Total (2004)  - Density Ranked 100th 2,893,251 1,158/km² Established 1652 Time zone SAST (UTC+2) Calling code 021 edit Cape Town (Afrikaans: Kaapstad /ˈkɑːpstÉ‘t...

Fishing is good along the coast but the unpredictable swells make angling from the rocks very dangerous. Over the years scores of fishermen have been swept to their deaths from the rocky platforms by freak waves. False Bay, which opens to the east and north of Cape Point, is the location of the well-known naval port of Simon's Town. The bay is also famous - or infamous - for its great white sharks, which hunt the Cape Fur Seals that live in the area. The Cape Peninsula, False Bay (top) and Table Bay,with Robben Island (right), from space, February 1995 False Bay, known in Afrikaans as Valsbaai, is a body of water defined by the Cape Peninsula (the finger-like projection on the right in the accompanying satellite image) and Cape Hangklip (Dutch... Simons Town Harbour, looking roughly to the south and showing the waters of False Bay Simons Town (also widely written Simonstown and, in Afrikaans, Simonstad), is a village and a naval base in South Africa, near Cape Town. ... Binomial name Arcetocephalus pusillus (Schreber, 1775) The Cape Fur Seal (also known as the South African Fur Seal) and the Australian Fur Seal are two subspecies of the Arctocephalus pusillus species of fur seal. ...

Cape Point is the site of one of the Global Atmosphere Watch's atmospheric research stations. In the early years of the 20th century icebergs from Antarctica were occasional spied from Cape Point. Whether there have been any authentic recent sightings of ice in this age of global warming is difficult to establish. Global Atmosphere Watchs logo The Global Atmosphere Watch (GAW) is a worldwide system established by the World Meteorological Organization – a United Nations agency – to monitor trends in the Earths atmosphere. ...

See also

• Cape of Good Hope
• Cape Peninsula

The Cape of Good Hope; looking towards the west, from the coastal cliffs above Cape Point. ... The Cape Peninsula, also known as the Peninsula of the Cape of Good Hope, is a 75 km peninsula jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean. ...

References