Frying Pan Shoals Light

About

Frying Pan Shoals Light Station is a decommissioned Coast Guard lighthouse located near the end of the Frying Pan Shoals 32 miles (51 km) SE of Bald Head Island, North Carolina. The Frying Pan Shoals Light Station rises 135' above the Atlantic Ocean. It has been privately owned since 2010 after it was purchased from a government auction. Identity of the owner (s) has not been disclosed. The nonprofit FPTower Inc. received a donation of shares in July 2025 and entered into an agreement in July 2026, ending the nonprofit's access to, and any responsibility for the structure's restoration. The facility is 95% powered by stored solar energy with fossil fuel generation reserved for heavy power usages such as welding. The nearly 6000 square foot helipad captures rainwater into one of the remaining 14,500 U.S. gallons (55, 000 liters) steel holding tanks attached under the belly where an ultraviolet (UV) and micro filtration system along with a commercial reverse osmosis system results in potable water suitable for cooking and general use. High-speed Internet communications were established by installing a radio 5.8 GHz microwave connection between two 4 ft (1.2 m) dishes, one at 1,340 ft (410 m) on a land based TV tower and the other located on the tower's helipad. The light tower is modeled after a steel oil drilling platform, known as a "Texas Tower", on top of four steel legs that

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.