Keelung Island Lighthouse, Solar-powered lighthouse on Keelung Island, Taiwan.
Keelung Island Lighthouse stands on the summit of Keelung Island, about 5 km off Keelung Harbor. The octagonal concrete tower is 12.3 m tall, painted with vertical black and white stripes, and rises to a focal height of 189.3 m above sea level, the second highest in Taiwan after Lanyu Lighthouse. It shows a white flash every 5 seconds.
Built to cover the limited range of the Yehliu light and Bitoujiao Lighthouse, the Keelung Island Lighthouse was completed and lit on 1 November 1980. Its light was raised from 3,500 to 8,000 candelas in 1990, and in 1998 the island's lack of mains power led to solar power, the first such lighthouse in Taiwan. A wind turbine was added in 2006.
Keelung Island and Heping Island together form the gateway to Keelung Harbor, but only Keelung Island stayed uninhabited, so passing ships used it as a landmark for identification. The surrounding waters, eroded by the northeast monsoon, are known as "Devil's Reef" because of frequent shipwrecks. Since 1992 the island has been developed for tourism, with wooden walkways, pavilions and a pier.
The lighthouse stands on the summit of Keelung Island, reached by a mountain trail from the dock; the ridge beside the path is a cliff without guardrails, so the summit was long closed to visitors. The island lies 5 km off Keelung Harbor and takes the northeast monsoon year-round. The tower itself is unmanned.
The tower's light height of 189.3 metres above sea level makes it Taiwan's second-highest lighthouse after Lanyu; the 12.3-metre octagonal concrete tower stands on a summit over 170 metres high. Construction materials were hauled up by cable because the island's slopes exceed 60 degrees, and the contractor kept losing money until the customs vessel Yunxing carried workers and supplies.
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