A Dalén light is a flashing light produced from burning of carbide gas (acetylene), combined with a solar sensor which automatically operates the light only during darkness.
In the last quarter of the 19th century navigation buoys began to be illuminated, however at first the lights were fixed (continuous) and could be mistaken for ship's navigation lights.[1]Gustaf Dalén invented a valve which could be adjusted to deliver pulses of acetylene into the lamp. A pilot light, which burns continuously, then ignited them.Шаблон:Sfn The pattern of flashes (known as the light's characteristic) can be set by screw adjustments.Шаблон:Sfn The invention of this system resulted in Dalén being awarded the 1912 Nobel prize in physics.Шаблон:Sfn Gas was wasted however due to illumination during the day and subsequently Dalén developed the sun valve to shut off the flashes during daylight.Шаблон:Sfn
The technology was a form of light source in lighthouses from the 1900s through the 1960s, when electric lighting had become dominant.[2] Dalén later invented the AGA cooker in 1922 whilst recuperating from an accident with acetylene which blinded him.Шаблон:Sfn The Carbide lamp was developed in the early 1900s. While the lamps proved useful in many applications, the problem of safely storing acetylene meant they needed regular refilling which constrained their use in applications such as lighthouses.[3]
