Wharton Reef Light
Encyclopedia
Wharton Reef Light is an inactive lighthouse
which used to be located on Wharton Reef in Princess Charlotte Bay
off the Cape York Peninsula
, Queensland
, Australia
. When it was deactivated in 1990 it was donated to the Townsville Maritime Museum and it is now on display near the museum. It is the only survivor of a series of twenty automatic lighthouses installed in Queensland during the "Golden Age of Australian Lighthouses" from 1913 to the early 1920s.
in 1901, responsibility over coastal lighthouses was to be transferred to the commonwealth. In 1911, the Lighthouses Act was passed, giving the Commonwealth the power to take responsibility over navigational aids as required. The actual transfer of responsibility took place with the formation of the Commonwealth Lighthouse Service (CLS) on 1 July 1915, during a period that was termed "the Golden Age of Australian lighthouses", from 1913 to the early 1920s. The CLS took over a group of 104 manned and 18 unmanned lighthouses. Lighting the northern Inside Passage, the shipping route
inside the Great Barrier Reef
, was one of the urgent tasks taken by the CLS. At the time, only four lights were present between the Torres Strait
and Cooktown, namely Grassy Hill Light
, Pipon Island Light, Goods Island Light
and Booby Island Light
. The CLS tackled this task with the installation of twenty new fully automatic unattended lights, a decision motivated by the shortage of manpower, materials and funding caused by World War I
.
The structures were almost identical, differing mainly in height. The structures were mostly installed on coral reef
s or sandbars, with little natural support. The foundation was usually a flat concrete base with concrete piers supporting the structure. The structure was a simple four legged steel frame, manufactured in Brisbane
, topped with simple lantern with a small balcony. The apparatus was a fully automatic Dalén light
consisting of a carbide lamp
feeding on compressed acetylene gas, controlled by a sun valve
.
Wharton Reef Light, established 1915, was one of the first such lights to be constructed. The lighthouse was located on Wharton Reef (then called Dhu Reef) in Princess Charlotte Bay
, west of Pipon Island, about 350 kilometres (217.5 mi) north of Cairns, replacing an earlier beacon on the reef. It was originally about 50 feet (15.2 m) high. The construction of Wharton Reef Light was especially difficult due to bad weather. Instability of the surface required deep excavation of the foundations.
Wharton Reef Light was described in 1959 as showing a white flash every three seconds. The light had an intensity of 1,500 cd and was visible for 13 nautical miles (24.1 km). The light was displayed at an elevation of 56 feet (17.1 m).
The lighthouse operated until 1990, when the structure was replaced by a fiberglass
hut and the light was replaced by an automatic ML-300 beacon. By then it was the last of its kind to remain operative. The tower was donated by the federal Department of Transport to the Townsville Maritime Museum. It was dismantled and shipped to Townsville. In 1996 it was erected in the middle of a traffic turnabout near the museum, where it stands on display as of 2011. The Fresnel lens
from the light is on display inside the museum, along with other lenses used in the area. It is now the only survivor of the series of twenty lighthouses.
structure, on concrete piles. It is 6 metres (19.7 ft) tall, from seabed to the deck, and the light is displayed at 14 metres (45.9 ft), with a daymark
at 12 metres (39.4 ft).
The current light characteristic is a flash every five seconds, white, red or green, depending on direction (Fl.W.R.G. 5s). Green is displayed at 84°-97°, visible for 7 nautical miles (13 km), white is displayed at 97°-126° and 229°-84°, visible for 10 nautical miles (18.5 km), and red is displayed at 126°-229°, visible for 7 nautical miles (13 km).
The light source is a solar power
ed ML-300 beacon with a 12 Volt
35 Watt
Halogen lamp
, showing an intensity of 2,100 cd
for the white light and 420 cd for the red and green ones. It is operated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority
.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
which used to be located on Wharton Reef in Princess Charlotte Bay
Princess Charlotte Bay
Princess Charlotte Bay is a large bay on the east coast of Far North Queensland at the base of Cape York Peninsula, 350 km north northwest of Cairns. Princess Charlotte Bay is a part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and it is a habitat for the dugong....
off the Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula
Cape York Peninsula is a large remote peninsula located in Far North Queensland at the tip of the state of Queensland, Australia, the largest unspoilt wilderness in northern Australia and one of the last remaining wilderness areas on Earth...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. When it was deactivated in 1990 it was donated to the Townsville Maritime Museum and it is now on display near the museum. It is the only survivor of a series of twenty automatic lighthouses installed in Queensland during the "Golden Age of Australian Lighthouses" from 1913 to the early 1920s.
History
With the Federation of AustraliaFederation of Australia
The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia formed one nation...
in 1901, responsibility over coastal lighthouses was to be transferred to the commonwealth. In 1911, the Lighthouses Act was passed, giving the Commonwealth the power to take responsibility over navigational aids as required. The actual transfer of responsibility took place with the formation of the Commonwealth Lighthouse Service (CLS) on 1 July 1915, during a period that was termed "the Golden Age of Australian lighthouses", from 1913 to the early 1920s. The CLS took over a group of 104 manned and 18 unmanned lighthouses. Lighting the northern Inside Passage, the shipping route
Shipping route
A shipping route is a trade route used by merchant ships.Early routes usually were coastal in nature as navigators had to rely on the coastal landmarks...
inside the Great Barrier Reef
Great Barrier Reef
The Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
, was one of the urgent tasks taken by the CLS. At the time, only four lights were present between the Torres Strait
Torres Strait
The Torres Strait is a body of water which lies between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is approximately wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost continental extremity of the Australian state of Queensland...
and Cooktown, namely Grassy Hill Light
Grassy Hill Light
Grassy Hill Light, also known as Cooktown Light, is an active lighthouse located on Grassy Hill above Cooktown, Queensland, Australia, on the south side of the entrance to Endeavour River.-History:...
, Pipon Island Light, Goods Island Light
Goods Island Light
Goods Island Light is an active lighthouse located on the highest point of Goods Island , an island in the Torres Strait, belonging to Queensland, Australia. It serves as the rear light of the Goods Island Range, pointing out the entrance to Normanby Sound.-History:The first navigation aid on Goods...
and Booby Island Light
Booby Island Light
Booby Island Light is an active lighthouse located on Booby Island, an island near the tip of Cape York Peninsula, west of Prince of Wales Island, within the Endeavour Strait, Queensland, Australia. It marks the western entrance to the navigation channel through the Torres Strait...
. The CLS tackled this task with the installation of twenty new fully automatic unattended lights, a decision motivated by the shortage of manpower, materials and funding caused by World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
The structures were almost identical, differing mainly in height. The structures were mostly installed on coral reef
Coral reef
Coral reefs are underwater structures made from calcium carbonate secreted by corals. Coral reefs are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters that contain few nutrients. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, which in turn consist of polyps that cluster in groups. The polyps...
s or sandbars, with little natural support. The foundation was usually a flat concrete base with concrete piers supporting the structure. The structure was a simple four legged steel frame, manufactured in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, topped with simple lantern with a small balcony. The apparatus was a fully automatic Dalén light
Dalén light
The Dalén light was the predominant form of light source in lighthouses from the 1900s through the 1960s, when electric lighting had become dominant. The system was invented by Gustaf Dalén and marketed by his company AGA. Dalén later invented the AGA cooker in 1922. The Dalén light is notable...
consisting of a carbide lamp
Carbide lamp
Carbide lamps, properly known as acetylene gas lamps, are simple lamps that produce and burn acetylene which is created by the reaction of calcium carbide with water....
feeding on compressed acetylene gas, controlled by a sun valve
Sun valve
A sun valve is a form of flow control valve, notable because it earned its inventor Gustaf Dalén the Nobel prize in physics....
.
Wharton Reef Light, established 1915, was one of the first such lights to be constructed. The lighthouse was located on Wharton Reef (then called Dhu Reef) in Princess Charlotte Bay
Princess Charlotte Bay
Princess Charlotte Bay is a large bay on the east coast of Far North Queensland at the base of Cape York Peninsula, 350 km north northwest of Cairns. Princess Charlotte Bay is a part of the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park and it is a habitat for the dugong....
, west of Pipon Island, about 350 kilometres (217.5 mi) north of Cairns, replacing an earlier beacon on the reef. It was originally about 50 feet (15.2 m) high. The construction of Wharton Reef Light was especially difficult due to bad weather. Instability of the surface required deep excavation of the foundations.
Wharton Reef Light was described in 1959 as showing a white flash every three seconds. The light had an intensity of 1,500 cd and was visible for 13 nautical miles (24.1 km). The light was displayed at an elevation of 56 feet (17.1 m).
The lighthouse operated until 1990, when the structure was replaced by a fiberglass
Fiberglass
Glass fiber is a material consisting of numerous extremely fine fibers of glass.Glassmakers throughout history have experimented with glass fibers, but mass manufacture of glass fiber was only made possible with the invention of finer machine tooling...
hut and the light was replaced by an automatic ML-300 beacon. By then it was the last of its kind to remain operative. The tower was donated by the federal Department of Transport to the Townsville Maritime Museum. It was dismantled and shipped to Townsville. In 1996 it was erected in the middle of a traffic turnabout near the museum, where it stands on display as of 2011. The Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...
from the light is on display inside the museum, along with other lenses used in the area. It is now the only survivor of the series of twenty lighthouses.
Current light
The current structure, installed on 26 March 1990, is a white fiberglass hut, mounted on a small stainless steelStainless steel
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5 or 11% chromium content by mass....
structure, on concrete piles. It is 6 metres (19.7 ft) tall, from seabed to the deck, and the light is displayed at 14 metres (45.9 ft), with a daymark
Daymark
A daymark or a day marker is a structure such as a tower constructed on land as an aid to navigation by sailors. While similar in concept to a lighthouse, a daymark does not have a light and so is usually only visible during daylight hours...
at 12 metres (39.4 ft).
The current light characteristic is a flash every five seconds, white, red or green, depending on direction (Fl.W.R.G. 5s). Green is displayed at 84°-97°, visible for 7 nautical miles (13 km), white is displayed at 97°-126° and 229°-84°, visible for 10 nautical miles (18.5 km), and red is displayed at 126°-229°, visible for 7 nautical miles (13 km).
The light source is a solar power
Solar power
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...
ed ML-300 beacon with a 12 Volt
Volt
The volt is the SI derived unit for electric potential, electric potential difference, and electromotive force. The volt is named in honor of the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta , who invented the voltaic pile, possibly the first chemical battery.- Definition :A single volt is defined as the...
35 Watt
Watt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
Halogen lamp
Halogen lamp
A halogen lamp, also known as a tungsten halogen lamp, is an incandescent lamp with a tungsten filament contained within an inert gas and a small amount of a halogen such as iodine or bromine. The chemical halogen cycle redeposits evaporated tungsten back on to the filament, extending the life of...
, showing an intensity of 2,100 cd
Candela
The candela is the SI base unit of luminous intensity; that is, power emitted by a light source in a particular direction, weighted by the luminosity function . A common candle emits light with a luminous intensity of roughly one candela...
for the white light and 420 cd for the red and green ones. It is operated by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority
Australian Maritime Safety Authority
Australian Maritime Safety Authority is responsible, on behalf of the Commonwealth Government of Australia, for the regulation and safety oversight of Australia's shipping fleet and management of Australia's international maritime obligations...
.