Santa Monica's Solar-Powered Ferris Wheel to Go Dark on Earth Hour

By Lookout Staff

March 21, 2018 -- In what has become an annual tradition, Pacific Park's solar-powered Ferris wheel on the Santa Monica Pier will briefly go dark Saturday night to celebrate Earth Hour.

As part of the campaign “Spark Global Awareness And Action For A Healthy Planet,” the Ferris wheel's 174,000 LED lights will be turned off except for the safety lights on its rim, park officials said.

Santa Monica's Ferris wheel will join other famous structures that will turn off their lights for an hour Saturday.

They include the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong, the Sydney Opera House in Australia, the Parthenon at the Acropolis in Greece, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in London and the Great Wall of China.

“There’s a part for everyone to play in this mass global effort to bring awareness to environmental conditions from individuals and small business owners to national companies and international organizations,” said Nathan Smithson, Pacific Park's marketing manager.

“Pacific Park works hard to be a leader in our local community and industry-wide for sustainability and green initiatives to help our environment,” added Smithson.

Started in Sydney as a symbolic gesture in 2007, Earth Hour is now celebrated in more than 180 countries and territories "as a global moment of solidarity for the planet," park officials said.

It's also good for marketing. Last year, #EarthHour and related terms generated more than 3.5 billion impressions in the run up to Earth Hour, trending in at least 30 countries worldwide on the night, officials said.

Pacific Park offers 12 amusement rides, 14 midway games, an oceanfront food plaza and retail shops, as well the Pacific Wheel, the world’s only solar-powered Ferris wheel.

Signature rides include The West Coaster, a steel roller coaster that races 55 feet above the Santa Monica Bay, and Inkie’s Air Lift Balloon Ride, the "high-flying, family-sharing kids’ ride," officials said.

For additional information and hours of operation, call 310-260-8744, visit www.pacpark.com, follow on Twitter: @pacpark and Like at Facebook: facebook.com/pacificpark.