Qilaibi Lighthouse

Qilaibi Lighthouse
奇萊鼻燈塔

Cilaibi Lighthouse
Location Qilaibi, Hualien County, Republic of China
Coordinates 24°00′57″N 121°38′38″E / 24.015818°N 121.643983°ECoordinates: 24°00′57″N 121°38′38″E / 24.015818°N 121.643983°E
Year first constructed 1931
Year first lit 1931
Deactivated Active
Foundation Concrete
Construction Concrete with brick
Tower shape Pentagram tower
Markings / pattern White(tower & lantern)
Height 7.6 m (25 ft)
Focal height 33.4 m (110 ft) above sea level
Original lens Fourth order fresnel
Intensity 28,000 candlepower
Range 16.6 nm
Characteristic Flashing white three seconds every six seconds

Qilaibi Lighthouse (Chinese: 奇萊鼻燈塔; Hanyu Pinyin: Qíláibí Dēngtǎ; Tongyong Pinyin: Cíláibí Dengtǎ) is one of several lighthouses in Taiwan. It is located in Qilaibi to the north of Port of Hualien in Hualien County. Today Qilaibi Lighthouse is overseen by the Customs Administration of the Ministry of Finance. The lighthouse is built between the Central Mountain Range and the Pacific Ocean. The lighthouse is not open to the public all year around.

Name Origin

The lighthouse takes its name from Kiray, a former name of Hualien City and a name used in the Hualien area that refers to the Sakiraya people.

History

Japanese rule period

The original lighthouse was built by the Japanese in 1931. The building is 7.6 meters high, concrete and white. The acetylene flashing light once used in this lighthouse utilized pressure-regulated acetylene and a timing device, to flash once at a regular 3-second interval. During World War II, the lighthouse was seriously damaged by Allied bombing.

Present

In 1963, in order to help nearby Hualien Harbor become an international port, a new lighthouse, consisting of a white pentagon concrete building, was built on the original lighthouse base. The newly built Qilaibi Lighthouse used a 4th class white light electric lamp, the light flashing 3 seconds and dimming 3 seconds at a regular 6 second intervals, and the luminous intensity is 28,000 cd. In 1973, a non-directional beacon pole was added, with output power 100 watts and range 100 nms, to function in coordination with the Lyudao Lighthouse, also a non-directional beacon pole, for the ships mutual positioning. In 1985, a radar beacon pole was set. Then finally, in 1992, the communication systems were comprehensively changed into a dual-frequency radar beacon pole.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Qilaibi Lighthouse.

References

  1. Su-fang Li, "The Lighthouses in Taiwan", Yuan-zu Culture Publ. Inc., Taipei county, Taiwan, 2002, pp. 138-141. ISBN 957-28031-2-3 (Chinese)
  2. Lun-hui Yue, "Ocean Navigator-The Fair of Taiwan Lighthouses", Kaoshiung History Museum, Kaoshiung, 2000, pp. 74-77. ISBN 957-02-7455-7 (Chinese)
  3. Customs, Ministry of Fiance of Taiwan, "The Concise History of the Republic of China Customs", Taipei, 1998. ISBN 957-00-4861-1 (Chinese)

External links