The Giordan Lighthouse, also known in Maltese as Ġordan or Ta’ Ġurdan, is an active lighthouse found on a hill above the village of Għasri. In 1840 a semaphore station was installed on the site consisting of three rooms built on top of each other linked by a spiral stair case going up to the roof. It is known that an earlier lighthouse was standing at this site from around 1650. Construction work on the current lighthouse began in June 1852 while beginning operation in 1853.
During World War II the lighthouse was contributory in safeguarding the Maltese Islands, due to housing a radar that anticipated attacks early thus giving sufficient time for air raid sirens to alert the people to take shelter from the imminent bombardment.
Along the years the lighting system of the lighthouse changed from oil and kerosene lamps to electrical equipment being installed. Towards the end of 1994 the system was updated once again and still operates at present. It works automatically hence needing less maintenance and surveillance. Owing to its hill top location, the light house flashes white light every 7.5 seconds, which is visible for 20 nautical miles.
Nowadays the building has also taken a secondary role as a weather and atmospheric monitoring station. It serves as the principal Global Atmospheric Watch Station for the Central Mediterranean, having air quality instruments based there that measure several parameters such as sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide.
The lighthouse site is one of Gozo’s best known landmarks, and has turned into a tourist attraction providing a breath-taking panoramic viewpoint of the Gozitan landscape.
