Cape Catastrophe is a headland in the Australian state of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

located at the southeast tip of

Jussieu Peninsula __NOTOC__ Jussieu Peninsula is a peninsula located at the south east end of Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by Proper Bay and Spalding Cove within the natural harbour known as Port Lincoln to the north, Spencer Gulf to the e ...

Eyre Peninsula The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north. Originally called Eyre’s Peninsula, it was named af ...

. It is one of the natural features named by the British navigator

Matthew Flinders Captain (Royal Navy), Captain Matthew Flinders (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814) was a British navigator and cartographer who led the first littoral zone, inshore circumnavigate, circumnavigation of mainland Australia, then called New Holland ...

in memory of the eight crew who were lost from a

cutter Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter, aka Stanley knife, a form of utility knife * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Side cutter * Cutter, a type of hydraulic rescue to ...

that capsized sometime after being launched from HM Sloop ''Investigator'' to search for water on 21 February 1802. Flinders also nominated the headland as being the western point of the mouth of

Spencer Gulf The Spencer Gulf is the westernmost and larger of two large inlets (the other being Gulf St Vincent) on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, facing the Great Australian Bight. It spans from the Cape Catastrophe ...

. It is currently located within the gazetted locality of

Lincoln National Park Lincoln National Park is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located about west of the state capital of Adelaide and about south of the municipal seat of Port Lincoln. It consists of a mainland area on the Jussieu Pen ...

and the

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

known as the

Memory Cove Wilderness Protection Area Memory Cove Wilderness Protection Area is a protected area in the Australian state of South Australia located on the south east tip of Jussieu Peninsula on Eyre Peninsula and on a number of nearby islands about south-south east of Port Lincoln. ...

References

External links

Shipwrecks - Cape Catastrophe
Headlands of South Australia Eyre Peninsula Spencer Gulf {{SouthAustralia-geo-stub