Inishtrahull Island
| Inistrahull Island | ||
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| Waters | Scottish Sea | |
| Geographical location | 55 ° 26 ′ 0 ″ N , 7 ° 14 ′ 0 ″ W | |
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| length | 1.3 km | |
| width | 480 m | |
| surface | 34 ha | |
| Highest elevation | 41 m | |
| Residents | uninhabited | |
 and the Tor Rocks to the north (top right in the picture) |
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Inishtrahull Island ( Irish : Inis Trá Tholl - "Island of the Empty Beach") is located around 10 km north of Malin Head , Inishowen in County Donegal, Ireland .
geography
The island, which is separated from mainland Ireland by Inistrahull Sound, is 1.3 km in length from east to west and up to 480 meters wide. It measures 34 hectares in area and reaches a height of 41 meters with a peak in the west as well as in the east. On the west side is a 23 meter high lighthouse.
1.6 km north-northwest of the island are the Tor Rocks , which reach a height of up to 22 meters. Tor Beg Rock is Ireland's northernmost landmass. Tor Sound lies between Inistrahull and Tor Rocks.
geology
The rock that occurs on the island is a specific form ( syenitic ) of a strongly deformed gneiss , which is named after the island of Inishtrahull gneiss and was formed around 1700 million years ago. The rock is the oldest found in the Irish Isles, and research shows geological similarities to southern Greenland . One of the earliest works on this rock was an article by the Glasgow geologist William J. McCallien in Geological Magazine in 1930 .
Residents
Today the island is uninhabited. However, there was a small town here until 1929 and the lighthouse was inhabited until 1987. The place was collectively dissolved in 1929.
lighthouse
Inishtrahull is the northernmost lighthouse in Ireland. It started operating in 1813 when the British Navy began to use Lough Foyle . Today its light flashes every 30 seconds.
Attractions
Inishtrahull is known for its wealth of animals and has been designated a nature reserve by the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The geological location and the lighthouse attract many unusual species of birds. The waters around the island are home to numerous species of fish, including sharks.
Port Mór on the island is a popular spot for lunch breaks among divers. There are hundreds of wrecks to visit around the island. Access to the island is restricted because of the dangerous currents around Malin Head and the island itself. These rules are monitored by the National Park Service.
Web links
- Irish national parks and wildlife service
- Irish lights
- Wildlife of Ireland (Inistrahull information section)
- rocks
Individual evidence
- ^ DR Bowes, AM Hopgood: Structure of the Gneiss Complex of Inishtrahull, Co. Donegal . In: Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. Section B: Biological, Geological, and Chemical Science, 75 (1975), B, pp. 369-390
- ↑ Image of the gneiss on the BBC website ( Memento of the original from January 27, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ William J. McCallien: The Gneiss of Inishtrahull, County Donegal . In: Geological Magazine, Vol. 67 (1930), pp. 542-549 at www.journals.cambridge.org
