The Tower of Light () is a former

transmission tower A transmission tower, also known as an electricity pylon or simply a pylon in British English and as a hydro tower in Canadian English, is a tall structure, usually a steel lattice tower, used to support an overhead power line. In electrical ...

Sanmin District Sanmin District () is a district of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. History During the Ming dynasty, the Wang, Tsai, and Cheng families built houses in the area to farm the land. The area was thus named ''Sankuaicu'' (). After the handover of Taiwan fro ...

, Kaohsiung,

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

History

The tower was originally used by

Taipower The Taiwan Power Company (, Taipower; ) is a state-owned electric power industry providing electricity to Taiwan and off-shore islands of the Republic of China. History Taipower was established on 1 May 1946. Its origins can be traced to 1919 ...

high voltage High voltage electricity refers to electrical potential large enough to cause injury or damage. In certain industries, ''high voltage'' refers to voltage above a certain threshold. Equipment and conductors that carry high voltage warrant sp ...

. With the construction of underground power cable, the tower was on the brink of being scrapped. The

Kaohsiung City Government The Kaohsiung City Government is the municipal government of Kaohsiung. It was formed after the merger of Kaohsiung County and Kaohsiung City in December 2010. Its chief administrator is the directly elected Mayor of Kaohsiung. History In ...

then actively persuaded Taipower to retain one tower for commemorative purpose. After successfully lobbying for a budget of NT$40 million, ecological concepts were incorporated into the design to use

solar power Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovolta ...

to illuminate the tower.

Architecture

The tower also features a display of various sizes of

insulators Insulator may refer to: * Insulator (electricity), a substance that resists electricity ** Pin insulator, a device that isolates a wire from a physical support such as a pin on a utility pole ** Strain insulator, a device that is designed to work ...

and a small

climbing wall A climbing wall is an artificially constructed wall with grips for hands and feet, usually used for indoor climbing, but sometimes located outdoors. Some are brick or wooden constructions, but on most modern walls, the material most often used i ...

at its side.

Transportation

The tower is accessible within walking distance west of Houyi Station of

Kaohsiung MRT Kaohsiung Metro () is a rapid transit and light rail system covering the metropolitan area of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Its rapid transit network is known as Kaohsiung Mass Rapid Transit or Kaohsiung MRT. Construction of the MRT started in October 200 ...

References

Buildings and structures in Kaohsiung Electric power infrastructure in Taiwan Pylons Tourist attractions in Kaohsiung Towers in Taiwan {{taiwan-struct-stub

History

Architecture

Transportation

See also

References