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| Split Point | |
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| Location: | Aireys Inlet, Victoria, Australia |
| Year first lit: | 1891 |
| Automated: | 1919 |
| Construction: | Concrete, rendered with cement |
| Tower shape: | Conical |
| Markings/Pattern: | White tower, red lantern roof |
| Height: | 34 m |
| Focal Height: | 66 metres |
| Original lens: | 1st order Fresnel |
| Intensity: | 116,000 cd (White), 23,000 cd (Red) |
| Characteristic: | Fl.(4) 20s |
| Admiralty number: | K2182 |
| NGA number: | 7984 |
| ARLHS number: | AUS-154 |
Split Point Lighthouse is a lighthouse located in Aireys Inlet—a small town on the Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Australia.
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History
Originally called Eagles Nest Point, the lighthouse was originally built in 1891. It was converted to automatic operation in 1919.
The original British-made first order Fresnel lens is still in use.[1] However, the factory in Birmingham, where the lens was built, was bombed during war-time and the essential formulae for making the unique lens crystal were lost, should a replacement ever be needed.
A Japanese firm, consulted by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, estimated the cost of replacing the lens at more than AUS$1 million.
Under standard Australian lighthouse convention, red filters would usually be placed to the extreme left and right of the beam (indicating "danger zones" for a passing ship, in-line with the jagged coastline). For reasons unknown, the Split Point Lighthouse operated for many years under the opposite system; although this has now been corrected.
Today
Since summer 2005, the Split Point Lighthouse has been offering regular 30 minute guided tours, during which visitors have the chance to climb the original staircase and experience the view from the balcony just below the lantern room. Tours had been available for much of the 1990s, but on only a few days per year.
The top of the lighthouse is also now used as a mobile phone base station, making it dangerous to enter the lantern room (or any area above) whilst it is in operation, due to possible exposure to RF radiation.
The original lighthouse keeper's quarters, a detached house adjacent to the site, is now a privately owned residence.[1]
Popular culture
The popular children's television series Round the Twist used the area around the Split Point Lighthouse for many external scenes. The lighthouse features prominently as the scene of a murder in Arthur Upfield's detective novel, "The New Shoe" featuring his famous detective Napoleon Bonaparte.
Gallery
 Split Point lighthouse, eagle rock |
 The area leading down to the surrounding cliffs |
 Split Point Lighthouse |
 Split Point Lighthouse |
 Explanatory table |
References
- ^ a b Rowlett, Russ. "The Lighthouse Directory". http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/vic.htm.
- Lighthouses of Australia Inc.. "The Split Point Lighthouse". http://www.lighthouse.net.au/lIGhtS/VIC/Aireys%20Inlet/Split%20Point%20Lighthouse.htm.
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Coordinates: 38°28′6″S 144°6′16″E / 38.46833°S 144.10444°E
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