Built in extremely difficult conditions on a rock next to the most southeastern part of Sakhalin Island, the Aniva lighthouse (Мыс Анива) has seen a lot of stories during its lifetime. Japan ordered the lighthouse to be built in the 1930s when Sakhalin was divided between that country and the USSR. At the end of World War II the Soviets took the whole of Sakhalin and installed an RTG (Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator) to supply electricity to the lamp, it became a nuclear powered beacon.
 |
| Aniva Lighthouse Sakhalin |
The fall of communism in the 1990s led to chaos and a lack of funds. The isolated Aniva lighthouse was looted and all the metal components were stolen, although luckily its RTGs were removed before they were stolen.
 |
| Aniva Lighthouse Sakhalin |
The lighthouse, at that time it was an architectural jewel, had been designed so that several guardians could live comfortably, a necessary condition because the area of Cape Aniva was practically uninhabited and it was difficult to reach it.
 |
| Aniva Lighthouse Sakhalin |
The construction consists of nine floors of which the first two largest are an annex building while the remaining 7 are part of the lighthouse tower. The total height of the lighthouse is 31 meters while the height of the light from the lighthouse with respect to sea level is 40 meters.