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Lighthouses |
 To help those on
ships determine location and to warn of potential
hazards, lighthouses have been built for centuries in
areas where naval or commercial vessels sail. The history
of lighthouses is filled with tales of lighthouse
keepers, the men who once lived in or near the lighthouse
whose light it was their responsibility to keep burning.
Most modern lighthouses, however, have automatic lights
that need little tending.Some few lighthouses have become quite famous. The one built on the island of Pharos, near Alexandria, Egypt, about 280 BC was regarded as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Along the Hudson River in New York City, under the George Washington Bridge, stands a small lighthouse about which a children's book was written 'The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Grey Bridge' by H. H. Swift and Lynd Ward. But the best known of all is the Eddystone Lighthouse on a reef 14 miles (22.5 kilometers) off the shore of Plymouth, England. Celebrated in ballad and folklore, it has had a long and sometimes tragic history. Four successive lighthouses have stood at this location. The first, opened in 1699, was swept out to sea only four years later. Its replacement was destroyed by fire in 1755. The third was replaced by the present tower in 1882. |
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Locations |
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 In the ancient world lighthouses were constructed by
the Phoenicians, Greeks,
Romans, and other maritime powers throughout the
Mediterranean region from the Black Sea to the British
Isles. For most of the Middle Ages, until about AD 1100
when commerce and trade revived, lighthouse construction
halted. Italy and France took the lead in construction of
new lighthouses, and by 1500 lighthouses were a standard
feature of navigational
charts.Lighthouses are located along most of the commercial shipping lanes of the world. Most are on the heavily traveled parts of oceans and seas, but they are also quite frequently found on inland lakes and rivers where commercial ships are common. Many are located on the Great Lakes in the United States. Lighthouses are built on shore, on offshore reefs, or are moored in the seabed. Since the construction of the third Eddystone Lighthouse, masonry and brick have continued to be used, especially for shore-based structures. But steel and concrete are now the most favored building materials. Lighthouses built in the open sea are moored on submerged caissons, concrete-filled cylinders, or sand-filled concrete bases. Some open-sea lighthouses are similar to offshore oil platforms. These have large upper decks that contain all necessary machinery, the light tower, and a helicopter landing pad. They are built on tubular steel piles driven about 150 feet (45 meters) into the seabed. |
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Illumination |
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| The means used to illuminate lighthouses have varied
considerably over the centuries. Wood and coal fires were
gradually superseded by oil lamps. Vaporized kerosene
came into use shortly after 1900, but the use of
acetylene gas, pioneered in Sweden by Gustaf Dalen
between 1900 and 1910, revolutionized lighthouse
technology. Because the fuel is contained in storage
cylinders, it made possible the establishment of
automated lighthouses in remote locations. They needed
only an annual visit to replenish the gas and to check
the operation of the mechanism. The use of arc lamps began in England in 1862, but these devices proved expensive and difficult to control. Electric-filament lamps came into general use in the 1920s and are standard today. They may be augmented by modern, more efficient arc lamps. In some lighthouses the xenon flash tube is used. It is similar to the flashing light mounted on some skyscrapers to ward off aircraft and birds. To increase light intensity and focus it into a beam, mirrors and other reflectors came into use in the 18th century. Modern lighthouses have reflectors, as well as lenses and prisms, to carry the light farther. So that the light can be seen from all directions, the lantern rotates at a controlled speed. Depending on the candlepower of the light, a beam can be seen from as far away as 28 miles (45 kilometers), although normal range is closer to 20 miles (32 kilometers). In bad weather, such as dense fog, even a modern light with 10 billion candlepower is barely visible from half a mile. To offset the problem of poor visibility, lighthouses also produce sound to give position and warning information. For centuries bells and explosive charges have helped guide mariners, but today the most common device is the foghorn, the sound of which is familiar to anyone who has lived near an area of water navigation. The largest of these, the diaphone, makes its sounds by a rapid release of compressed air. The noise may be heard up to a distance of eight miles (12 kilometers). Because sound waves are subject to the vagaries of weather humidity, wind direction and speed, and temperature radio and radar beacons, called racons, have become a standard means of guiding ships. These are detected with special equipment. |
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Lightships and Buoys |
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Other aids to navigation, similar in function to
lighthouses, are lightships and buoys. Lightships came
into use in the 17th century in places where a lighthouse
was impracticable. A modern lightship is a steel vessel
about 120 feet (35 meters) long. Usually manned by a crew
of about seven, it carries all the equipment standard to
a lighthouse. Some lightships are unmanned floats with
automatic acetylene lights. These are adequate for
sheltered waters where high-powered illumination is not
necessary. Buoys are floating steel devices used to
delineate channels in rivers, harbors, and estuaries.
They also mark single, isolated dangers such as wrecks or
rocks. They vary in size from five to ten feet (1.5 to
three meters) in diameter and weigh from one to nine tons
(910 to 8,160 kilograms). They are moored to heavy
concrete or cast-iron sinkers by a length of chain. The
color, shape, and markings of a buoy convey information
to navigators. The standards for
buoys, known as the Lateral and Cardinal systems, were
drawn up by the League of Nations in 1936 and are still
in use. Most buoys are in the shape of cones, spheres, or
cylinders; and they are painted red or black, alternating
with white or plain markings. They may also be lighted.
The light may come from burning acetylene or propane, or
from electricity. Large buoys that rise about 14 feet (4
meters) above water have recently come into use in
treacherous open-sea conditions. They carry lights and
sound devices.Because lighthouses, lightships, and buoys are often located in remote, hard-to-reach places, the power used to operate them is usually derived from diesel generators located at the site or, in the case of buoys, from replaceable electric batteries. See also:  'Buoyage' |
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Administration |
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In most maritime nations, lighthouses are
administered by the central government. In the United States, their operation is
overseen by the Coast Guard;
in Germany, by the Ministry of Marine;
in Sweden, by the National Administration of Shipping and
Navigation;
in Norway, by the Directorate of Lighthouse Services;
in Greece, by the Hydrographic
Office of the Hellenic Navy;
in Japan, by the Maritime Safety Agency; and
in Canada, by the Aids of Navigation Division of the
Department of Transport. An exception is Great Britain: lighthouses
in England and Wales are governed by the Corporation of
Trinity House, a public corporation independent of the
government. Trinity House is financed by dues levied on
shipping, based on tonnage, at ports in the United
Kingdom. Similar corporations operate the lighthouses in
Scotland and Ireland. |
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