San Cristóbal Lighthouse

San Cristóbal Lighthouse

San Cristóbal in 2013
Location	San Sebastian, La Gomera
Coordinates	28.09609°N 17.10007°W / 28.09609; -17.10007
Tower
Height	15 metres (49 ft)
Light
First lit	1903/1978
Focal height	84 metres (276 ft)
Range	21 nautical miles (39 km; 24 mi)
Characteristic	Fl (2) W 10s

The San Cristóbal Lighthouse (Spanish: Faro de San Cristóbal) is an active lighthouse on the Spanish island of La Gomera in the Canary islands. The current lighthouse is the second to have been constructed on the rocky headland of Punta de San Cristóbal (Saint Christopher's Point), on the eastern side of the island, overlooking the approaches to San Sebastián de La Gomera, the main port and capital of La Gomera.^[1]

Description

San Cristóbal was commissioned as part of the second maritime lighting plan for the Canaries, and is the oldest and principal lighthouse of La Gomera. Construction of the first lighthouse began in 1900 and it became operational in 1903.^[2] Designed by the engineer by Juan de León y Castillo, it was built in a similar style to other early Canarian lights, consisting of a whitewashed single-storey keeper's house, with dark volcanic rock used for the masonry detailing. The light was shown from a lantern room at the top of a six-metre-high (20 ft) masonry tower, which was attached to the seaward side of the house, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. It remained in service until 1978, when it was replaced by the new modern tower.^[1][3]

The new lighthouse became operational in 1978, and consists of a short, 15-metre cylindrical tower, painted white with a distinctive daymark of a wide red band. Its design is a smaller version of the one used for the Fuencaliente Lighthouse on the nearby island of La Palma.^[1]

The clifftop location of the lighthouse means that it has a focal height of 84 meters above sea level, with a nominal range of 21 nautical miles. The optics consist of a third order Fresnel lens, which has a light characteristic of two flashes of white light every ten seconds.^[4]

It is registered under the international Admiralty number D2842 and has the NGA identifier of 113-23812, and is managed by the Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife.^[5]

The site of the lighthouse at the end of the Camino del Faro (Calle Carretera al Faro) is open to the public, but the tower and buildings are closed^[1][6]

See also

• List of lighthouses in Spain
• List of lighthouses in the Canary Islands

References

1. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Spain: Canary Islands". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
2. "Historia del faro de San Cristóbal en La Gomera" (in Spanish). El Diario. 10 April 2014. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 25 October 2017.
3. "Los faros que alumbran et Atlantico" (in Spanish). teldeactualidad.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
4. "2842 Faro de San Cristobal" (in Spanish). Guias masmar. Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
5. List of Lights, Pub. 113: The West Coasts of Europe and Africa, the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea and Azovskoye More (Sea of Azov) (PDF). List of Lights. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2014. p. 416.
6. "San Sebastian". iHoppers. Archived from the original on 5 August 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2016.