Highly energy efficient and 138 meters high, this is the light on the new star of the Sagrada Familia

Night image of the Sagrada Familia with the star of the tower of the Virgin Mary illuminated.
  • The Endesa Foundation collaborated in the lighting for the tower of the Virgin Mary, a project that was able to overcome great technical challenges thanks to innovation and the latest technologies.
  • The whole tower has LED lights that consume up to 10 times less than those of the conventional type.
  • The light temperature of the star is cooler than that of the rest of the basilica, and similar to that of the stars, a difference that has a double objective: Conceptual and artistic.

Yesterday a new star was lit in the city of Barcelona, the one that crowns the tower of the Virgin Mary in the Sagrada Familia. The Endesa Foundation collaborated to make the lighting project for the tower terminal possible, including the star itself, an authentic engineering work of great technical complexity that is also efficient from the energy point of view, whilst still maintaining its conceptual and artistic objective.

The star consists of twelve points and a central core that is a dodecahedron out of which spring the twelve pyramids, which constitute each point. In this dodecahedron there are twelve spotlights, each focussed towards one of the tips. Each spotlight is composed of twelve lamps or beams of light: Eight round the perimeter in the form of a circle, and four centrally placed in the centre of this circle. While the perimeter lamps have a wider beam to light up the interior of the pyramid, the four central lamps project a much narrower beam of light that should reach the end of the tip of each pyramid.

 

Innovation, efficiency and sustainability

All the lighting in the tower uses this technology. The use of LEDs enables energy consumption to be up to 10 times lower than it would be if lamps or spotlights with conventional technology were used. In figures, the power of each tip is 43 W, so if we multiply this by the twelve tips, we are talking about a total power of 516 W, the same that would be used by a standard blender.  

Another highlight of the lighting project is the hue of the star, slightly brighter than the rest of the basilica. The chosen colour temperature, 4,000 kelvins, is more artistic and more conceptual. From the artistic point of view, as the basilica is made of stone, it needs to be illuminated with a warm light of 3,000 kelvins. To get the star to stand out from the monumental complex and differ from it, it really had to have a whiter tone, which also blended with the colours that can be seen on the shaft (ranging from blue to white if you follow the structure from bottom to top). So we have a white star, because stars are white. The colour temperature of stars depends on their physical temperature and these range from the most bluish tones (like the Bellatrix star, at 25,000 kelvins) to the most reddish tones (like Betelgeuse, which barely reaches 2,000 K). Leaving stars to one side, 4,000 K would also be the equivalent of the colour temperature of a mercury lamp.

 

The challenges of a luminous star located at a height of 130 metres.

It is worth remembering that the star is located at a height of 138 metres; taking into account that it is an ornamental body of glass and steel, it is a considerable height and that leaves it very exposed to weather conditions. This is why its design and final materials had to be decided after passing a number of tests. This led to the transfer of one of the twelve tips with one of the twelve spotlights to a laboratory specialising in ray-proof materials and they were subjected to the discharge of a lightning bolt before the final version was reached.

Another condition that was taken into account was the temperature at which they need to operate. So during the day when the temperature is at its highest, the structure and the spotlights are prepared to be able to withstand temperatures of up to almost 80 ºC when turned off. It should be borne in mind that, being a glass body and despite the ventilation systems in place, it is still very much like a greenhouse that concentrates heat on the inside. At night, to undertake checks with the spotlights turned on, 42ºC was taken as a reference, the maximum temperature recorded in Barcelona in a single night. As a result they were designed to have an operating regime of 50 ºC, that is, to reach this temperature inside while switched on.

Fluid dynamics studies were conducted to see the temperature and humidity ranges commented on and, from these data, the most appropriate technology and spotlights could be selected to be able to work under these conditions. In this regard, despite the existence of certain architectural extraordinary elements in glass and steel, the basic reference for construction were the indications made by Antoni Gaudí himself, who made it clear how everything should be and how his project should be defined. 

Workers during the placement of the star that crowns the tower of the Virgin Mary in the Sagrada Familia.

Another highlight of the lighting project is that it is digitalised. The spotlights have sensors that are incorporated into the general control system for all the lighting in the temple. So if certain parameters are exceeded or any of the spotlights does not operate in the way established, an alarm will go off and action can be taken immediately. They are not only monitored, they can also be remotely controlled.

All this system was already incorporated inside the star at the time it was lifted up with a crane and fitted on 29 November and it now crowns the top of the tower. Special connectors were created to connect the star to the power supply that went up from the tower with the use of easy-to-use plugs. The person who connected the star on the 29th had been trained at ground level, so as to be able to make the connections as quickly as possible. This person was trained in work at a high altitude as well as in electrical concepts and once the star was placed, had the privilege of being able to literally plug it into the current from the inside. 

From left to right: the president of the Sagrada Familia Board of Trustees, Esteve Camps Sala; Cardinal Juan José Omella; the president of Endesa and the Endesa Foundation, Juan Sánchez-Calero Guilarte, at the signing of the agreement at the Episcopal Palace in Barcelona.

Right from its beginnings in 1998, the Endesa Foundation has contributed to the illumination of major architectural works in Spain as a result of the conviction that providing electricity and light is a unique way of enhancing and highlighting the importance of our heritage. There is a list of 700 illuminated works, distributed throughout Spain, including Medina Azahara (Córdoba), the Basilica of Covadonga (Asturias), the Chapter House of the Cathedral of Toledo, the Cathedral of Santa María (Vitoria) and many others

The lighting processes not only comply with the common sustainability and energy efficiency criteria shared with Endesa and the Enel group, they also capture and multiply the beauty of the monument by providing a new artistic view of our common past and projecting it into the future.

 

About the Endesa Foundation

The Endesa Foundation's projects highlight the enhancement and preservation of our past through common historical heritage and promote the present and future of our society through innovation and close collaboration with other entities in the third sector. With more than 20 years' experience, the Endesa Foundation helps to shed light on the talent of the most vulnerable groups and sensitivity with regard to their demands in order to progress towards a society with more opportunities for everyone. 

 #iluminamostalento 

Documents

Press release in PDF

PDF (0.2MB) Download
advise icon go to the advise Facebook icon go to Facebook Twitter icon go to Twitter Youtube icon go to Youtube Messenger icon go to Messenger Linkedin icon go to Linkedin Instagram icon go to Instagram Shared Link icon Go to the shared link Checkmark Success icon Checkmark Success down arrow icon down arrow Previous Go to previous Next Go to the next close icon close add icon add up arrow icon up arrow oblique arrow icon look obliquely Arrow down icon Arrow down search engine icon search search engine icon search share icon share filter icon filter email icon send mail email icon email phone icon phone fax icon fac print icon print play icon play user icon go to the user section error icon an error has occurred info icon information thumb up icon like thumb up icon like thumb down icon don't like thumb down icon don't like clock icon Clock Lamp icon Lamp List icon List Map icon Go to the map Phone icon Phone Emergency icon Emergency Pause icon Pause Play icon Play Logout icon Sign off Phone icon Phone Download icon An icon representing a download Chat icon An icon representing a chat
go back icon go back in navigation number 50 icon go to product Tempo Happy 50 Horas calendar icon go to product Tempo Happy Día companies icon go to the business segment gas icon go to gas product catalog rising sun icon go to Tempo Verde-Renewable Energy product home icon go to the household segment 24 hours icon go to One Luz product electricity icon go to Luz's product catalog electricity and gas icon go to the Luz + Gas product catalog moon icon go to product One night light monkey wrench icon go to breakdowns and repairs sun icon go to Tempo Solar product clock icon go to Tempo Happy products 2 hour clock icon go to Tempo Happy 2 Hours product 24 hours icon go to product One Luz number 50 icon go to product Tempo Happy 50 Hours Medium Voltage power line See product catalog with electricity consumption from € 36,000 to € 360,000 / year High Voltage power line See catalog of products with electricity consumption more than € 360,000 / year company icon go to the business segment calendar icon go to product Tempo Happy Day Property management firms icon go to the Property management firms DarkSite icon DarkSite icon light bulb icon See product catalog with electricity consumption less than € 6,000 / year electricity and gas icon go to the Electricity+ Gas Products catalog electricity icon go to the electrical products catalog email icon email contact fax icon fax contact Low Pressure gas icon see catalog of gas products with consumption of less than € 6,000 / year High Pressure gas icon see catalog of gas products with consumption from € 6,000 to € 240,000 / year Medium Pressure gas icon see catalog of gas products with consumption of more than € 240,000 / year gas icon go to gas product catalog Enel icon go to the enel website heater icon heater maintenance service heater maintenance icon go to maintenance service OKGas Heater home icon go to the household segment pressure cooker icon pressure cooker monkey wrench icon go to breakdowns and repairs Medium Voltage power line icon see catalog of electricity products with consumption from € 6,000 to € 36,000 / year moon icon go to product One Night Light sphere icon go to personal website phone icon telephone contact rising sun icon go to Tempo Verde-Renewable Energy product solar panel icon go to photovoltaic solar energy clock icon go to Tempo Happy products black handyman icon with thumb down selected the reaction "I don't like it" little hand icon with thumb down select the reaction "I don't like it" black hand icon with thumb up selected the "like" reaction little hand icon with thumb up select the "like" reaction
Añadir otro equipo eléctrico Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Eliminar equipo eléctrico Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Aspiradora Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Horno Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Lavadora Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Lavavajillas Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Microondas Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Plancha Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Punto de recarga vehículo eléctrico Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Radiador eléctrico Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Secadora Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Split Aire Acondicionado Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Termo Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Tostador Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Vitrocerámica Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Power edit Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit. Map marker Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit.