Virginia’s Assateague Lighthouse
This mod is one in a series of United States Lighthouse created for MSFS 2020 as part of a larger American Lighthouse Project. It features Virginia’s Assateague Lighthouse. This is a highly detailed, accurate model featuring night lighting, in this case, the rotating double beacon that flashes every 5 seconds. The goal of the American Lighthouse Project is to create most of the major United States’ lighthouses, initially on the Atlantic coast, then later on the Great Lakes and Pacific coast. The initial set focuses on the Mid-Atlantic region, from Virginia north to the tip of Long island. The first set includes this light (Assateague), Cape May, Absecon Light, and Barnegat Light all of which are published here and on FlightSim.com. Future lights include the now decommissioned Cape Charles Light at the southeast end of the Delmarva peninsula in VA, the Twin Lights of Navesink in the Highlands of NJ, Sandy Hook Light in NJ south of New York City, and Montauk Light, at the far eastern tip of Long Island NY. Others will follow.
Assateague Light, is a historic and still operating lighthouse located at the Assateague Island National Seashore just east of Chincoteague, VA and is the second light to stand at that location. Originally, no light existed between Cape Henlopen (1784), Delaware, and Cape Henry, Virginia (first tower, 1791). In the 1820s it was determined that additional lights would be needed along the coast- one at Cape Charles and one in the general vicinity of Chincoteague Island. In 1830 the United States Congress appropriated money for a light and the following year Assateague Island was selected. 50 acres of land was purchased and the first tower, with a height of 45 feet, was erected in 1833. However, between the lush foliage that grew rapidly around it, and the ocean currents that were rapidly shifting Assateague’s southern point further south (approximately 4.6 miles south-southwest as of today), the first light was wholly inadequate. By 1852, the lighthouse board determined that they needed a 150-foot tower at the site. Design work commenced and the new light begun in 1860. Work halted during the Civil War, but resumed right after with the new light completing in 1867. It was originally equipped with a first-order Fresnel beacon which today is on display at the Museum of Chincoteague Island. The grounds also contain an oil house (late 1890’s) and a keeper’s house (1910) south of the light.
Assateague Light is 142 feet tall with a focal plane of 129.3 feet and is located on a ridge 22 feet above sea level. As with most masonry towers, Assateague has two separate walls. The cone shaped outside wall is 2 feet 2.4 inches thick at the bottom, and 1 foot 6 inches (0.46 m) thick at the top. The inside wall is a cylinder with 1 foot 6-inch-thick walls at the bottom, narrowing at the top, and which contains the spiral staircase. As with other coastal lighthouses, the walls were designed to withstand winds several times above known hurricane forces.
The Fresnel light was replaced after World War II with two double mounted, doubled ended DCB-36 rotating aerial beacons (DCB stands for Directional Code Beacon) that produce a powerful double flash every 5 seconds and remains an important navigational aid into the Chincoteague Inlet.
The view from the top allows visitors to see all of Chincoteague Island, all of Assateague Island and well into southern Maryland. Visitors can also clearly see both NASA’s Wallops Island Atlantic launch complex to the southwest and the Wallops Flight Facility to the west. The light is open for public tours on weekends during the summer; visitors will have to purchase a pass at the gate to the Assateague Island National Seashore, which is part of the National Park Service system of the U.S. Department of the Interior. The Assateague Island National Seashore protects Assateague Island as it is the largest natural barrier island ecosystem in the Middle Atlantic states region and remains predominantly unaffected by human development.
The lighthouse was depicted on the 2003–2004 Federal Duck Stamp and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is jointly managed by U.S. Fish & Wildlife (grounds) and the U.S. Coast Guard (Navigational facilities).
The model is automated with its beacon rotating accurately- the lights themselves only showing from dusk to dawn. It was built in Cinema 4D R21 and prepared for MSFS 2020 in blender using the MSFS 2020 plugin.
*Note: at night there is some bleed through from the beacon light. This is a current limitation in the MSFS 2020 SDK which does not cast shadows properly from point lights. Additionally, SDK r9 through r12 is unable to draw polygons which is the only way to remove trees. The initial release of this model is revision is 3.0 and an upgrade with the tree fix will be issued when the SDK can perform that function again (no estimate of when that function will be available).
BORN UNDER THE LIGHT
Perhaps the most unique aspect of the Assateague Island National Seashore is the presence of two wild horse herds, one on the Maryland side, managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and two herds on the Virginia side, managed by the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department. Every year, the Virginia herd (composed of a north and south group) is twice rounded up, once in July, and once in the fall. In July, the CVFD, under expert veterinary guidance, selects all the new foals (generally born in May) that will return to Assateague Island. Those not selected are auctioned off to enthusiastic Assateague (Chincoteague) pony lovers. While the northern group roams up towards the Maryland border, the southern group is found along the western side of Assateague Island, south of, and in full view of, the lighthouse, and all foals born there are born under that nightly flashing beacon. In 2020, much to our joy, our family obtained one such southern group foal (to join our family of three horses), a little mare, who, as of this writing, is now exactly one year old. Given our deep love and respect to the island’s legacy, on her stall is a painted Assateague piece of driftwood of the Assateague light. After all, it is a part of her heritage…
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