Svenska Högarna ( en, Swedish Hillocks) is a small group of

island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

s and a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

located east of Möja in the Stockholm archipelago.

History

The lighthouse is located on the largest island ''Storön'', and is the only lighthouse in Stockholm archipelago with the classic iron design of architect

Nils Gustaf von Heidenstam Nils ''Gustav'' von Heidenstam (1822 – 2 June 1887) was a Swedish engineer born in Blekinge. He was the chief engineer of the Swedish Royal Coast Guard. Life He was the son of Werther Werner von Heidenstam (16 October 1763 – 1852) and father ...

. Before the lighthouse was built there had been a checkered

day beacon A day beacon (sometimes "daybeacon") is an unlighted nautical sea mark. A signboard identifying it is called a day mark. Day beacons typically mark channels whose key points are marked by lighted buoys. They may also mark smaller navigable route ...

on the island, it is now located at the island of Storkläppen in

Östergötland Östergötland (; English exonym: East Gothland) is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish) in the south of Sweden. It borders Småland, Västergötland, Närke, Södermanland and the Baltic Sea. In older English li ...

. Svenska Högarna lighthouse was lit in 1874 with a

colza oil Close-up of canola blooms Canola flower Rapeseed oil is one of the oldest known vegetable oils. There are both edible and industrial forms produced from rapeseed, the seed of several cultivars of the plant family Brassicaceae. Historically, i ...

lamp. In 1887 a

paraffin Paraffin may refer to: Substances * Paraffin wax, a white or colorless soft solid that is used as a lubricant and for other applications * Liquid paraffin (drug), a very highly refined mineral oil used in cosmetics and for medical purposes * Alkane ...

lamp was installed, in 1966 it was electrified and in 1986

solar cell A solar cell, or photovoltaic cell, is an electronic device that converts the energy of light directly into electricity by the photovoltaic effect, which is a physical and chemical phenomenon.

s were put in use to generate power. The island is staffed with a weather station. It is frequently reported as a wind observation station in the

Shipping Forecast The Shipping Forecast is a BBC Radio broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. It is produced by the Met Office and broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. ...

of the

Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute The Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute ( sv, Sveriges meteorologiska och hydrologiska institut, abbreviated SMHI) is a Government agency in Sweden and operates under the Ministry of the Environment. SMHI has expertise within the ...

. Since 1994 the lighthouse is owned by a foundation called "Edward Sjöbloms stiftelse". All of the islands are a

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, or features of geological or ...

with sparse vegetation. On the islands you can also observe two

giant's kettle A giant's kettle, also known as either a giant's cauldron, moulin pothole, or glacial pothole, is a typically large and cylindrical pothole drilled in solid rock underlying a glacier either by water descending down a deep moulin or by gravel r ...

s. There is no scheduled traffic to Svenska Högarna. Access is by own boat or taxiboat. The isolated islands are not easy to reach: the weather must be very calm in order to moor boats safely to the rocky shores.

Climate

Svenska Högarna has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freezing ...

under the 0 °C isotherm, and an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

in the -3 °C isotherm with low

diurnal temperature variation In meteorology, diurnal temperature variation is the variation between a high air temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day. Temperature lag Temperature lag is an important factor in diurnal temperature variation: peak d ...

, windy and mild conditions. Summer highs are cool, whilst winter lows remain very mild, with some years barely having a meteorological winter. The climate has a significant

seasonal lag Seasonal lag is the phenomenon whereby the date of maximum average air temperature at a geographical location on a planet is delayed until some time after the date of maximum insolation (i.e. the summer solstice). This also applies to the minimum ...

, with temperature extremes often being two months after maximum and minimum insolation. The climate is relatively dry in terms of rain and snowfall, but retains a high humidity. In spite of its isolated position, the climate has semi-continental characteristics, with significant differences between seasons for such an isolated island.

Gallery

File:SvenskaHogarnaHamn.JPG File:32 2 SVH FYR.jpg File:32 7 SvH Fyren speglar sig.jpg File:SVH LINS.JPG

References

External links

Sjofartsverket

{{DEFAULTSORT:Svenska Hogarna Islands of Norrtälje Municipality Islands of the Stockholm archipelago Lighthouses in Sweden Lighthouses completed in 1874

History

Climate

Gallery

See also

References

External links