Nieblum Lighthouse, Maritime navigation aid in Nieblum, Föhr island, Germany.
The Nieblum Lighthouse is a navigation aid on Föhr island built from aluminum for durability and longevity. The structure stands about 10 meters tall and emits light signals in white, red, and green colors that ships can identify from considerable distances away.
The Nieblum lighthouse was built in 1981–82 south of Föhr and was automated from the start; it is operated by the Wasserstraßen- und Schifffahrtsverwaltung (WSV) of Tönning. It guides shipping through the Rütergat, the fairway between the open North Sea and the islands of Amrum and Föhr, where a strong current runs. Its twin is the lighthouse at Nebel on Amrum.
The tower is one of a pair: it is identical to the Nebel lighthouse on Amrum, and both mark the Rütergat channel. Its narrow sectors — green 3°, white 1.5°, red 3° — leave little margin, so sailors crossing the strong current of the Rütergat rely on the light to hold their line.
The tower stands just behind the dike at the end of the Heidweg, about 400 m from the beach; from the sand only the lantern head shows above the dike line. A small operations building sits a few metres south of the tower. The site is exposed to wind off the North Sea, and the Rütergat nearby carries a strong current.
The light is a sector guiding light with unusually narrow sectors: green 3°, white 1.5° and red 3°, so a small course error changes the colour seen. Its range is about 20 nautical miles for white and 16 for green and red. The tower is bolted to its foundation with threaded bolts.
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