World's oldest lightbulb still burning even after 109 years

THE worlds oldest light bulb has been burning for 109 years - so little wonder it has a fan club with thousands of members and its own website.
As EU rules deny householders the right to use traditional filament bulbs, the so-called 'Centennial Light has been on almost constantly since 1901. It holds pride of place in Fire Station 6, in Livermore, northern California.
The longest time the Guinness World Record-holding bulb has ever been turned off for is just a week.
Dangling above the fire engines, people come for hundreds and thousands of miles to see the diminutive symbol. The bulb was designed by Adolphe Chailet, who competed with the likes of the world famous Thomas Edison to make the best bulb.
Despite his amazing design Chailet was never as successful as Edison even though his bulb was proved to survive higher voltages.
Bulb protector Steve Bunn said the secret of the lights success was down to good old fashioned engineering. He said: 'They certainly dont make them like this anymore, its a real sign of how some things were better made in the past.
'The man who invented the bulb was Adolphe Chailet and he sounded by all accounts to be a very serious person. 'But when it comes to spark, he did perform an experiment where several competitors, including Edison.
'All the bulbs were subjected to a test of increasing voltage, and exploded, all except for Chailets which just got brighter. 'That would have been fun to watch.
'The appeal of the light is worldwide, a few weeks ago I received a message from someone living in the Arctic Circle.
'They said the little bulb was a beacon of light for the whole world, even in dark and lonely places which was a humbling thought to me.
History of the light bulb
1809: An English chemist, Humphrey Davy, used a high power battery to induce current between two charcoal strips producing a bright light.
1879: Thomas A. Edison, along with others developed the first practical filament lightbulb design, it lasted just 13.5 hours. However in months Edison had developed one which lasted 1,200 hours.
1930: Photo flashlight bulbs were first used in photography.
1959: A design for halogen lightbulb is first patented by the US company General Electric.
1962: The LED, or light-emitting diode is first introduced as a practical component in computers and electronics.
2009: The UK Government announced it was phasing out the traditional filament lightbulb banning sales in favour of environmentally-friendly halogen models.
Daily Mail