THE ISLE OF WIGHT - NEEDLES LIGHTHOUSE

Where you find yourself on the planet and where we are in the solar system determines your fate

 

 

 

In 1781 merchants and ship owners petitioned Trinity House for a lighthouse.  They obtained a specification in January 1782 which directed that lights should be: 

 

"kept burning in the night season whereby seafaring men and mariners might take notice and avoid danger ..... and ships and other vessels of war might safely cruise during the night season in the British Channel."

 

Set in the western approaches to the Isle of Wight, the Needles form a narrow chalky peninsula which rises from jagged rocks to 120m high cliffs.  These rocks have always been a hazard to ships making their way up the Solent to Portmouth and Southampton Water.

 

 

 

St Catherine's Point: 50° 39'.70 N O1° 35,42 W

 

 

It was proposed that William Tatnall, or Tatsall, should (at his own expense) build the 1ighthouse, dwellings and necessary communications roads and provide keepers at the Needles, St. Catherine's Point and Hurst Point.  All dues would go to Trinity House who in return would pay Tatnall £960 a year for 21 years.  An alternative proposal  was that Trinity House could build the lighthouse.

 

Negotiations took four years until 1785, during which Tatnall dropped out leaving Trinity House to erect the lighthouse.  The chosen design was from R. Jupp, a former surveyor to the East India Company, from three locations at the Needles, St. Catherine's Point and Hurst Point.  The Needles tower was illuminated on the 29th September !786.   As the tower was situated on top of a cliff overhanging Scratehell's Bay, the light which was 144m above sea level was often obscured by sea mists and fogs and was therefore of limited use to mariners.

 

Consequently, in 1859 Trinity House planned a new lighthouse to be built on the outermost of the chalk rocks near sea level.  It was designed by James Walker and cost £20,000.  The circular granite tower has perpendicular sides and is 33.25mm high, of uniform diameter with an unevenly stepped base to break the waves and discourage sea from sweeping up the tower. The wall varies from 1.07m in thickness at the entrance to 0.61m at the top. Much of the base rock was cut away to form the foundation.  Cellars and storehouses were excavated in the chalk.

 

 

 

The Needles looking west

 

 

The light at the Needles has two white, two red and one green sector, with one of the red sectors intensified, these are set out as follows:

 

 

Red intensified sector shore to 300°

White sector 300 ° to 083 °

Red sector 083° to 212°

White sector 212° to 217°

Green sector 217° to 224°

 

marks the St Anthony Rocks

marks the approach to the Needles Channel from the west

marks the Shingles Bank

marks the course through the Needles Channel

marks a safe channel past the Heatherwood Rocks and the Warden Ledge

 

 

Eventually, the Needles Lighthouse was automated.  Keepers left the lighthouse for the last time on 8th December 1994.

 

Needles was the last Trinity House lighthouse powered by 100V DC electricity from it's own generators.  To enable the automation to be carried out, a mains power supply had to be laid on via a sub-sea cable from the Needles Battery.  This provided standard single phase 240V AC power for the new equipment.  A Helicopter pad was built onto the lighthouse to enable maintenance to be carried out quickly in emergencies.

 

The original optic with its arrangements of green and red glass giving the different sectors sectors of light remained after automation but a new three position lamps after was installed with two 1500W 240V main lamps and a 24 volt battery powered emergency lamp.

 

 

 

The Needles looking east

 

 

The supertyphon air driven foil: signal was replaced by two Honeywell ELG 500 Hz directional fog signals, controlled by means of a fog detector.  The emitter stacks were mounted at gallery level outside the helicopter pad, structure.  The Needles is now monitored and controlled via a cellphone telemetry link from the Trinity House Operations Control Centre at Harwich, Essex.

 

 

ESTABLISHED

HEIGHT OF TOWER

HEIGHT OF LIGHT ABOVE MEAN HIGH WATER

AUTOMATED

OPTIC

LAMP

CHARACTER

 

 

 

INTENSITY

 

 

RANGE OF LIGHT

 

 

FOG SIGNAL CHARACTER

1786

31 METRES

 

26 METRES


1994

2ND ORDER 700MM FIXED LENS

1000 WATT 240 V

WHITE, RED AND OREEN GROUP OCCULTING TWICE EVERY 20 SECONDS (LIGHT 14 SECONDS, ECLIPSE 2 ,SECONDS, LIGHT 2 SECONDS, ECLIPSE 2 SECONDS)

 

RED (INTENSIFIED) 3,950 CANDELA, WHITE 12,300 CANDELA, RED 1800 CANDELA, GREEN 2680 CANDELA.

 

RED [INTENSIFIED) 17 SEA MILES, WHITE 17 SEA MILES, RED 14 SEA MILES, GREEN 14 SEA MILES.

 

SOUNDS TWICE EVERY 20 SECONDS

 

 

 

 

SUSSEX INDEX A - Z

 

ALFRISTON

ARUNDEL CASTLE

BATTLE

BATTLE ABBEY

BATTLE OF HASTINGS

BEACHY HEAD - BELL TOOT (BELLE TOUT) LIGHTHOUSE

BEACHY HEAD LIGHTHOUSE

BEXHILL

BIRLING GAP

BODIAM CASTLE

BRIGHTON

CHICHESTER

CHIDDINGLY - HORSE SHOW and GYMKHANA

CROWBOROUGH

CUCKMERE VALLEY - EXCEAT

DISTRICT AND BOROUGH COUNCILS

EAST SUSSEX
EASTBOURNE - EASTBOURNE PIER

FIRLE

FIRLE BONFIRE SOCIETY

GLYNDE

GUY FAWKES

HAILSHAM

HASTINGS

HEATHFIELD

HERSTMONCEUX - CASTLE - CE SCHOOL - LINKS - FESTIVAL

LEWES

LEWES DISTRICT COUNCIL

NEWHAVEN

PEVENSEY CASTLE

RYE

SEAFORD

SEVEN SISTERS

SUSSEX

SUSSEX THINGS TO DO GUIDE

THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS

TRUGS

TWISSELLS MILL, OLD HEATHFIELD

UCKFIELD

WEALD

 

 

 

 

 

 

WORLD GEOGRAPHY

 

 

 

Adelaide

Aden - Yemen

Afghanistan

Africa

Alaska

Albania

Algeria

Amazon Rainforest

Amsterdam

Antarctic

Arctic North Pole

Argentina

Asia

Athens

Atlantis - Plato's Lost City

Australia

Austria

Aztecs - Mexico

Baghdad

Bahamas

Bahrain

Bangladesh

Barbados

Beachy Head, England

Belgium

Benin

Berlin

Bermuda

Black Rock Desert

Bohemia

Bolivia

Bonneville Utah History

Bonneville, Utah, USA

Brazil

Brighton - West Pier

British Columbia

Buckingham Palace

Bulgaria

Burkina Faso

Burma

California

Canada

Canary Islands

Cape Horn

Cape Verde

Cape York - Au

Caribbean

Cayman Islands

Central Africa

Chichester Harbour

Chile

China

Columbo - Sri Lanka

Columbia

Corfu

Cowes, Isle of Wight

Croatia

Crooked Island, Bahamas

Cuba

Cyprus

Czechoslovakia

Darwin - Australia

Daytona Beach

Denmark

Eastbounre Pier, England

Earthquakes

Ecuador

Egypt

Eindhoven

Estonia

Equator

Europe

Falkland Islands

Falmouth, Cornwall

Fiji

Finland

France

Galapagos Islands

Geography Links

Geography Mountains

Geography Records

Geography Resources

Geography Statistics

 

 

Germany

Ghana

Gibraltar - Links

Greece

Greenland

Guinea

Guinea Bissau

Hawaii

Holland the Nertherlands

Hollywood, California, LA

Hong Kong

Hungary

Hurricanes

Iceland

India

Indonesia Links

Iran

Iraq

Ireland

Isle of Man

Isle of Wight - The Needles

Israel

Italy

Ivory Coast

Jakarta - Java

Japan

Johannesburg

Jordan

Kent, England

Kenya

Korea

Kuwait

Kyoto

Lanzarote, Gran Canaria

Las Vegas

Lebanon

Liberia

Libya

Liechtenstein

Life on Earth

Lithuania

London - Big Ben

London Eye

London Houses Parliament

London - Buckingham Palace

London - Old Bailey

London - Overview

London - The City

London - Tower Bridge

London - Trafalgar Square

Luxembourg

Madame Tussauds

Malaysia

Mali

Malta

Marshal Islands

Mauritania

Maya Empire - Central America

Melbourne, Australia

Middle East

Melbourne, Australia

Mexico

Monaco

Morocco

Mountains

Mumbai

Naples- Italy

National Geographic

Nepal

New York

New Zealand

Niger

Nigeria

North Africa

Norway

Nova Scotia

Oceans and Seas

Oman

Pakistan

Palermo - Sicily

Palestine

Palma - Malorca

 

 

Panama Canal - Links

Paris

Pendine Sands

Peru

Philippines

Pisa, Leaning Tower

Planet Earth

Poland

Port Moresby - PNG

Port Said - Egypt

Portugal

Puerto Rico

Qatar

Quebec

Rio de Janeiro

Romania

Rome

Russia

Salt Lake City

Samoa

Saudi Arabia

Scandanavia

Scotland

Senegal

Siera Leone

Singapore

Solomon Islands

Somalia

South Africa

South America

Southampton

Spain - Espana

Sri Lanka - Links

Stonehenge

Sudan

Suez Canal

Sundancer Holiday Resort

Sussex, England Index

Sweden

Switzerland

Sydney, Australia

Syria

Tahiti - Polynesia - Links

Tahitian - Men & Women Customs

Taiwan

Thailand

The Gambia

Togo

Tokyo, Japan

Tonga - Polynesia

Toronto

Trinidad - Lesser Antilles

Trinidad and Tobago

Tsunami

Tunbridge Wells, England

Tunisia

Turkey

Tuvalu Islands

UAE - United Arab Emirates

UK Statistics

Ukraine

United Kingdom

United Kingdom - Gov

USA

Uruguay

Vanuatu Islands

Vatican City

Venezuela

Venice

Vienna

Vietnam

Volcanoes

Volendam

Wales

Washington D.C.

WAYN Where Are You Now

Wealden iron industry

Wendover

West Africa

World Peace Supporters

Yemen

Yugoslavia

Zurich

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Solar Cola drinkers care about planet earth

 

.. Thirst for Life

 

Planet Earth Solar Cola can 330 mil

 

(330ml Planet Earth can)

 

 

 

 

 

This website is Copyright © 1999 & 2024.   The bird logo and name Solar Navigator are trademarks. All rights reserved.  All other trademarks are hereby acknowledged.       Max Energy Limited is an educational charity.