Arenas Blancas Lighthouse

The Arenas Blancas Lighthouse (Spanish: Faro de Arenas Blancas) is an active lighthouse on the Canary island of La Palma in the municipality of Villa de Mazo, near the village of La Salemera. The larger settlement of Mazo lies 8 km to the north-west.[2]

Arenas Blancas Lighthouse
Canary Islands
LocationVilla de Mazo
La Palma
Canary island
Spain
Coordinates28.569951°N 17.760458°W / 28.569951; -17.760458
Year first constructed1993
Constructionconcrete tower
Tower shapecylindrical tower with a spherical roof
Markings / patternwhite tower
Tower height38 metres (125 ft)
Focal height46 metres (151 ft)
Light sourcemains power
Range20 nautical miles (37 km; 23 mi)
CharacteristicL 3 oc 1 L 1 oc 1 L 1 oc 1 
Admiralty numberD2849.51
NGA number23798
ARLHS numberCAI-002
Spain numberES-13025
Managing agentComisión de faros[1]

It is one of four main lighthouses on La Palma, each one marking a different quadrant of the island. The modern lighthouses of Arenas Blancas and Punta Lava are located on the eastern and western sides of the island. The lighthouses at Punta Cumplida and Fuencaliente are situated on the northern and southern points.[3]

Description
Lantern detail

The need for the lighthouse was identified in the third maritime lighting plan for the Canaries in 1989, as a navigation aid for coastal shipping on the east coast of the island.[4] It first entered service in 1993, and stands on a cliff around eight metres above sea level, next to the Atlantic Ocean which gives the lantern a focal height of 65 metres (213 ft). The light has a range of 20 nautical miles, and has an occulting light characteristic which consists of a pattern of three flashes of white light every eight seconds.[2][5]

The white cylindrical tower with a curved tip is considered to be of a "striking modern" design. The 38-metre-high (125 ft) concrete tower has fluted sides, with the light shining from a horizontal opening on the seaward side.[2]

The lighthouse is operated and maintained by the port authority of the province of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. It is registered under the international number D2849.51 and has the national identifier of 13025.[2]

Map
Map showing the principal lighthouses of La Palma

See also

References
  1. Arenas Blancas Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 27 March 2016
  2. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Spain: Canary Islands". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  3. Griffes; National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (1 October 2009). NGA Sailing Directions-Enroute: 2008 West Coast of Europe and Northwest Africa (11th Edition). ProStar Publications. p. 167. ISBN 978-1-57785-885-0.
  4. "Los faros que alumbran et Atlantico" (in Spanish). teldeactualidad.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2017. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  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. 2013. p. 415.
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