Macquarie's shining light

Monday 12 November 2018
The light of the Macquarie lighthouse can shine 48 kilometres out to sea—more than the distance of a marathon.
AMSA officer looking up at Macquarie light inside the lighthouse

The power of light is measured in candelas. One candela represents the same amount of light as one burning candle. Macquarie Lighthouse has a light power of 229,000 candelas. The light comes from a set of highpowered, modern lights called LEDs or light-emitting diodes.

Macquarie light was established in 1818 and stands 105 metres up from sea level inside the Macquarie lighthouse tower. It spins one revolution every 20 seconds—3 revolutions per minute and flashes every 10 seconds for 0.29 of a second to alert ships coming towards Sydney.