| Mount Bellenden Ker | |
|---|---|
 Mount Bellenden Ker summit and aerial cableway from Bruce Highway | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 1,593 m (5,226 ft) |
| Coordinates | 17°15′51″S145°51′14″E / 17.26417°S 145.85389°E /-17.26417; 145.85389 |
| Geography | |
  Mount Bellenden Ker Location in Queensland | |
| Location | Queensland,Australia |
| Parent range | Bellenden Ker Range |
Mount Bellenden Ker is the second-highestmountain inQueensland,Australia, with a height of 1,593 metres (5,226 ft). It is named after the botanistJohn Bellenden Ker Gawler. Located 39 km (24 mi) south ofCairns, and nearBabinda, it is adjacent toMount Bartle Frere, the state's highest peak, part of theBellenden Ker Range, also known as the Wooroonooran Range. The two mountains dominate theJosephine Falls section of theWooroonooran National Park.[1] Both peaks are made of resistantgranite and are remnants of an escarpment that has been eroded by theRussell andMulgrave Rivers.
The mountain's summit is the rainiest part of Australia. Several televisiontransmitter towers have been built on the mountain. The only access to the television transmitter site and the mountain top weather station is by a privately owned cable car.[2]
In 1873,Walter Hill, Queensland's first Colonial botanist, undertook an expedition to northern Queensland to collect native plants and included a trip to Mount Bellenden Ker. In the same yearRobert Arthur Johnstone climbed the peak while exploring the coastal lands south ofCooktown withGeorge Elphinstone Dalrymple.[3] Another expedition to the summit, led byArchibald Meston, was conducted in early February to early March 1889.
The forest canopy on Bellenden Ker is an example of acloud forest, with high biodiversity and its frequent cloud cover and fog.
The mountain lies in theWooroonooran Important Bird Area, identified as such byBirdLife International because it supports populations of a range of bird species endemic toQueensland's Wet Tropics.[4]
The rain gauge at its summit records an annual average rainfall of 8,053.6 mm (317.07 in), making it the wettest meteorological station in Australia. It also holds the record for the highest rainfall in a calendar year of 12,461 mm (490.6 in) in 2000 and the highest rainfall in Australia for a calendar month of 5,387 mm (212.1 in) in January 1979.[5][6]
In 2006, the mountain received more rainfall – 9,800 mm (390 in) – than any other part of Australia.[7] This was primarily due to two severetropical cyclones passing close to the mountain. In 2010, Queensland's wettest year on record, the top station on the mountain recorded 12,438.4 mm (489.70 in), just under the 2000 record.[8]
| Climate data for Mount Bellenden Ker (top station); elevation: 1,545 metres (5,069 ft) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 996.9 (39.25) | 1,201.7 (47.31) | 1,304.4 (51.35) | 1,082.5 (42.62) | 784.1 (30.87) | 457.2 (18.00) | 402.0 (15.83) | 309.8 (12.20) | 279.1 (10.99) | 340.1 (13.39) | 367.4 (14.46) | 564.7 (22.23) | 8,053.6 (317.07) |
| Source:Bureau of Meteorology[6] | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Mount Bellenden Ker (bottom station); elevation: 97 metres (318 ft) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 675.8 (26.61) | 830.7 (32.70) | 813.9 (32.04) | 582.0 (22.91) | 339.0 (13.35) | 177.5 (6.99) | 137.4 (5.41) | 121.6 (4.79) | 136.1 (5.36) | 167.4 (6.59) | 276.9 (10.90) | 380.3 (14.97) | 4,546.3 (178.99) |
| Source:Bureau of Meteorology[9] | |||||||||||||
