Name and Location

Sultan Shoal Lighthouse is an active sea-marking light located off the south-west coast of Singapore. Its address is 6JQX+R6 Singapore, with coordinates 1.2396132 N, 103.6480581 E.

2. Construction and History

Commissioned in 1901, the lighthouse was built by British colonial authorities to improve safety on the busy Singapore–Straits shipping route. It has served as an important navigational aid through both World Wars.

3. Architecture and Materials

The lighthouse is a skeletal (open-frame) tower made of prefabricated cast-iron plates and columns mounted on submerged concrete piles. The tower height is approximately 12 meters above the base platform, with a foundation consisting of a cylindrical concrete caisson secured to the shoal bed.

4. Light and Navigation

The lighthouse has a focal height of about 19 meters above mean sea level and emits two white flashes every 10 seconds (Fl (2) W 10 s). Its nominal range is 12 nautical miles, and it is fully automated with no resident keepers since the mid-20th century.

5. Accessibility and Visiting

The lighthouse is an offshore structure with no public pier or jetty, making visits only possible by private or chartered vessels with prior permission from the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA). There are no on-site facilities, and boarding is potentially hazardous without professional marine support.

6. Notable Views and Landscape

The surrounding environment features coral reefs and shallow waters, home to reef fish, dugongs, and sea turtles. The open sea horizon offers occasional views of merchant vessels and tankers passing by.

7. Anecdotes and Folklore

There are no notable anecdotes or folklore related to the Sultan Shoal Lighthouse.

8. Technical and Operational Details

The lighthouse is managed by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and is listed in the NGA and UK Admiralty Lists of Lights. It does not have a dedicated radar station but is covered by shore-based AIS and radar networks. The lighthouse is not gazetted as a national monument but is protected as part of Singapore's navigational infrastructure.

9. Further Information

For further information, refer to the Wikipedia article on Sultan Shoal Lighthouse (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultan_Shoal_Lighthouse), the NGA List of Lights (Pub. 112) – entry for Singapore Straits, and "Lighthouses of Singapore" by Morgan & Lee (2005).