Open Bay is a bay located to the south-west of Rabaul, on the northern coast New Britain around the neck of the Gazelle Peninsula, in West New Britain Province. The bay is surrounded by the villages of Baia and Maitanakunai.[1] During the Australian administration of the area prior to Papua New Guinea's independence, the area was exploited as a timber producing region.[2] The Mavelo Plantation was located nearby. During the final stages of World War II, Australian forces established a defensive line across the island between Open Bay and Wide Bay, Papua New Guinea during the Battle of Wide Bay–Open Bay in 1945.[3]
Climate
editOpen Bay has a tropical rainforest climate (Af) with heavy to very heavy rainfall year-round.
| Climate data for Open Bay (Maitanakunai) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 31.0 (87.8) |
30.8 (87.4) |
30.8 (87.4) |
30.5 (86.9) |
30.6 (87.1) |
30.8 (87.4) |
29.3 (84.7) |
29.7 (85.5) |
30.7 (87.3) |
30.7 (87.3) |
31.1 (88.0) |
30.9 (87.6) |
30.6 (87.0) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 27.1 (80.8) |
27.0 (80.6) |
27.0 (80.6) |
26.7 (80.1) |
27.0 (80.6) |
26.8 (80.2) |
25.9 (78.6) |
26.2 (79.2) |
26.8 (80.2) |
27.0 (80.6) |
27.2 (81.0) |
27.1 (80.8) |
26.8 (80.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 23.2 (73.8) |
23.2 (73.8) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.0 (73.4) |
23.4 (74.1) |
22.9 (73.2) |
22.5 (72.5) |
22.7 (72.9) |
23.0 (73.4) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.4 (74.1) |
23.3 (73.9) |
23.1 (73.6) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 447 (17.6) |
435 (17.1) |
508 (20.0) |
354 (13.9) |
199 (7.8) |
221 (8.7) |
246 (9.7) |
251 (9.9) |
217 (8.5) |
189 (7.4) |
219 (8.6) |
431 (17.0) |
3,717 (146.2) |
| Source: Climate-Data.org[4] | |||||||||||||
References
edit- ^ "Open Bay". Pacific Wrecks. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
- ^ "Open Bay timber area map". Department of Forestry. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
- ^ Dennis, Peter; et al. (2008). The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. p. 390. ISBN 978-0-19-551784-2.
- ^ "Climate: Open Bay". Climate-Data.org. Retrieved 20 October 2020.
4°48′S 151°32′E / 4.80°S 151.54°E
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