Point Charles Light
Point Charles Light, view from sea
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 Northern Territory
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| Location |
Port Darwin Northern Territory Australia |
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| Coordinates | 12°23′21.44″S 130°37′50.45″E / 12.3892889°S 130.6306806°ECoordinates: 12°23′21.44″S 130°37′50.45″E / 12.3892889°S 130.6306806°E |
| Year first constructed | 1893 |
| Automated | 1933 |
| Deactivated | 1971-1974 |
| Construction | cast wrought iron skeletal tower |
| Tower shape | hexagonal tower with central cylinder, balcony and lantern |
| Markings / pattern | red tower with a horizontal white band and white lantern |
| Height | 105 feet (32 m) |
| Focal height | 128 feet (39 m) |
| Original lens | 1st order Chance Brothers dioptric |
| Light source | solar power] |
| Intensity | 37,000 cd. |
| Range | 17 nmi (31 km; 20 mi) |
| Characteristic | Fl W 5s |
| Admiralty number | K3322 |
| NGA number | 111-9524 |
| ARLHS number | AUS-056 |
| Managing agent | Australian Maritime Safety Authority |
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Point Charles Light, also known as Charles Point Light, is an active lighthouse located on a headland at the northern end of the Cox Peninsula, 21 kilometres (13 mi) northwest of Port Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. Established in 1893, it is the oldest lighthouse in the Northern Territory.
Many ships were wrecked in the approach to Port Darwin in the 1880s, and the Marine Board recommended in 1888 that lights should be erected at Capes Fourcroy and Don and Points Emery and Charles. Funds for the Point Charles and Point Emery lights were raised by a loan, and the contract for the Point Charles light went to Chance Bros of Birmingham, England who packed the lighthouse in crates and shipped it to Adelaide in 1891. The contents were shipped aboard the SS Inaminka to Port Darwin, and after a short period by the SS Airie to Point Charles, where construction began in 1892. Though the construction was to be finished before 8 September 1892, the rusty condition of the lighthouse when it was unpacked caused a delay, and the lighthouse was officially opened on 1 February 1893 by Charles James Dashwood, the Government Resident of the Northern Territory of the day.
The 92 feet (28 m) tower was constructed of wrought iron, and consisted of a central tube almost 2 metres (6 ft 7 in) in diameter, with struts and braces. A spiral staircase inside the tube leads to the lantern room on top of the gallery. The lantern housed a revolving 1st order dioptric lens, and the original light source was a vapourised kerosene burner, producing a light intensity of 100,000 cd. The burners were replaced by "Trinity" burners in 1894 due to an insect problem. The light characteristic was one white flash every 30 seconds, with red and green sectors (Fl.W.R.G. 30s). The focal height was 36 metres (118 ft), and the light was visible for 17 nautical miles (31 km; 20 mi), including from Darwin.
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