How it was. Construction of the Panama Canal. Panama Canal - the connection of two oceans and the feat of mankind The Panama Canal belongs to the state

— section of the Corte Culebra with the Bridge of the Americas above it

Along the route of the canal between the cities of Panama and Colon are roads and railways. Lake Gatun with a whole system of islands and deepened waterways serves the canal. Its waters are used to lift, wire and lower ships, to fill the reservoirs of the entire system of locks, from which water flows to their chambers. Spare tanks in the form of giant round containers are also filled with water, and at the right time, through a complex system of transitions, it enters the locks. All additional tanks are located at some distance from the lock system. If you go by bus to the north of the country, then all this engineering design can be contemplated from the window. Auxiliary water supply is provided by another reservoir - Lake Alajuela. Such volumes, such power, and the very ingenious idea amazes everyone who visits the Panama Canal for the first time.

In the morning, ships are ferried from the Pacific Ocean to the Caribbean Sea, and in the afternoon ships are pulled from the Atlantic to the Pacific. It is interesting that every day in the evening the water on the Panama City embankment arrived when the locks were opened and ships were lowered into the Pacific Ocean, and in the morning the bottom was almost bare. This is how the canal creates artificial tides in Panama Bay. Just imagine what the water potential of this facility is!

Having descended from the Miraflores observation deck to the first floor, I watched with interest a film about the construction of the canal and its heroes, and everyone was a hero. The film made a strong impression on me. What I admired today from above has become a grand test, a difficult period and a deadly project for many thousands of people who came into contact with the construction of the canal at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.

The first attempt to build a shipping route was made by the French at the end of the 19th century (1879), while the US authorities advocated a Nicaraguan version of the canal. The idea for France turned into an almost economic disaster. The funds allocated for the construction were not enough, only a third of the work was spent twice as much as expected. Huge sums went to the Panamanian bureaucrats and to pay for all sorts of permits and concessions, the project itself turned out to be wrong and was underestimated in its value. But the most terrible for the workers were tropical diseases - malaria and yellow fever. People were mowed down by death. In nine years, 20,000 workers died. The construction fell into disrepute, newspapers of that time wrote that some groups of workers brought their own coffins with them from France. For all these reasons, wage payments stopped and work was stopped. France was overwhelmed for two years by a scandal and all sorts of trials over the organizers of the project. Lesseps was one of the outstanding engineers of his time (he owned the Suez Canal project), as a result of the bankruptcy of the Panama project, as well as the famous creator of the Eiffel Tower, Alexander Eiffel, were accused of large-scale fraud, mediocre campaign management and misappropriation of funds and sentenced to various prison terms. conclusions. Ferdinand Lesseps did not survive the stress and died.

Sixteen years of silence, if you can call it that, the period of abandonment of a grandiose construction site. But all this time, the United States, by hook or by crook, sought to continue construction, now by the forces of the Americans. Contracts were signed again, all kinds of permits were bought up, lands and islands were bought out, which in the future could serve as a channel in terms of protection, security, maintenance and management. The French had bought the work already done and the necessary equipment. Under the 1903 treaty, the United States received in perpetual possession "a zone of land and land under water for the construction of ... a canal." As a result, the Americans became the owners of a huge package of permits and the US War Department began the construction of the canal in 1904. Panama effectively became a US protectorate.

Workers were needed to resume the grandiose construction. A call was thrown. People came from all over the world. By that time, the sources of the deadly diseases of yellow fever and malaria had become known. The Americans have made every effort for another project to destroy harmful insects. Forests were cut down, swamps were drained and grass was burned in the area of ​​the proposed work. The territory was watered with special oil against mosquito larvae, and they, imagine, succeeded. Illnesses are no longer a hindrance.

It took ten years of hard work to complete the project. People dug canals, drilled rocks, blasted hills and rebuilt the railroad, which carried the soil.
The canal's chief engineer was John Frank Stevens. This time the right project was chosen. The construction took 10 years, $400 million and 70 thousand workers, of which, according to American data, only about 5,600 people died, which, in comparison with the losses of the French, turned out to be almost four times less. Their mistakes served the Americans as a good lesson.
The canal was officially opened on June 12, 1920, although the first ship passed through it in August 1914. The Panama Canal was controlled by the United States until December 31, 1999, after which it was transferred to the government of Panama.
This is a brief history of the grandiose object that connected the two oceans. The Panama Canal was the greatest engineering feat in human history.

On Miraflores, I also visited the museum, where I controlled a container ship from the virtual captain's cabin and led it through the locks.

The construction of the Panama Canal was one of the most important milestones in navigation. Put into operation in 1920 (the first ship passed through it in 1914, but due to a landslide in the autumn of that year, official traffic was opened only six years later), the canal shortened the route between the ports of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans several times - before, to get from one ocean to another, ships had to go around South America right around Cape Horn. Today, the Panama Canal is one of the world's main sea routes, through which about 18,000 ships pass annually (the current throughput of the canal is 48 ships per day), which is a significant part of the world's cargo turnover.

The history of the Panama Canal goes back to the 16th century, when the Spaniard Vasco Nunez de Balboa was the first to cross the Isthmus of Panama and reach the Pacific coast - so it was discovered that the territory of modern Panama is only a narrow strip of land between the oceans. In 1539, the Spanish king sent an exploration expedition to explore the possibility of building a waterway across the Isthmus of Panama, but the expedition reported to the king that this undertaking was unrealizable.

The first real attempt to build the Panama Canal was made by the French in 1879 under the leadership of Ferdinand de Lesseps, a diplomat and manager of the Suez Canal project, which had been opened shortly before, in 1869. But building the Panama Canal was a much more difficult task. In 1889, the French project went bankrupt - the challenge posed by the Panamanian jungle with its tropical downpours, impenetrable swamps and at the same time rocky soils, floods and, worst of all, deadly epidemics of malaria, yellow fever, plague, typhoid and other diseases was too difficult. , which claimed the lives of about 20 thousand people in the first campaign.

Then the United States took over the construction of the Panama Canal. The United States was interested in shortening the waterway from the ports of California to its Atlantic coast, and most importantly, the Panama Canal was of tremendous military importance - it allowed the fleet to be transferred almost instantly from one ocean basin to another, which significantly increased the power and world influence of the States. In 1903, the United States bought the Panama project from the French, secured Panama's independence from Colombia, which did not want to provide the Americans with the canal zone for, in fact, perpetual use, after which they signed a formal agreement with the new Panamanian government (which was again represented by the Frenchman Philippe-Jean Bunot -Varilla, who was one of the main participants in the bankrupt first project). The treaty gave the United States a 5-kilometer zone on each side of the canal for perpetual use (that is, in fact, forever) and the exclusive right to occupy territories outside this zone as part of any measures to protect the waterway. Thus, the declaration of the canal neutral and the guarantee of free passage through the canal of military and merchant ships of all nations, both in time of peace and in time of war, was destroyed by the American reservation that these regulations would not apply to such measures that the United States considered necessary to take for the defense of Panama and maintaining order in the channel. In fact, in a war in which the United States would participate, their military fortifications would inevitably deprive the other belligerent of the opportunity to use the channel on an equal footing.

John Frank Stevens became the chief engineer of the Panama Canal. Taking into account the mistakes of the French, the Americans first of all took colossal measures to disinfect the construction zone and prevent tropical diseases. The project was also changed - according to the French project, the Panama Canal, like the Suez Canal, was supposed to be built on the same level with the oceans, without locks. This required a colossal amount of excavation work on the watershed section of the route. American engineers changed the design and proposed a lockable channel with three stages of locks on each side and a watershed section at a height of 26 meters above the ocean level. On the watershed, the Gatun reservoir was created, into which ships from the Atlantic side rose in the Gatun locks, and from the Pacific - in the Pedro Miguel and Miraflores locks.

The Panama Canal was opened in 1920 and remained under US control for many years. There were dozens of American military bases in the canal zone, and about 50,000 military and civilian specialists worked. Over time, dissatisfaction with this began to grow in Panama, and in 1977 an agreement was signed on the gradual transfer of the Panama Canal from the United States to Panama. In reality, this process took more than two decades, and finally the canal zone passed into the possession of Panama on December 31, 1999.

The length of the canal is 81.6 kilometers, of which 65.2 kilometers are actually on land and another 16.4 kilometers along the bottom of the Panama and Limon bays to deep water. Vessels that are large enough to pass through the Panama Canal are called Panamax class ships. This standard was the main one for marine vessels until the early 1990s, when the active construction of Post-Panamax class ships (mainly tankers) began, the dimensions of which are larger than the dimensions of the Panama Canal locks. Today, the cost of one passage of the Panama Canal depends on the type and size of the vessel and ranges from $800 for a small yacht to $500,000 for the largest ships. There were also funny cases - for example, in 1928, 36 cents were taken from the famous American traveler Richard Halliburton, who sailed through the canal from one ocean to another. :)

The Panama Canal today is not only one of the most important transport links in the world, but also the main tourist attraction of Panama. At the Panama Canal, there is now a large tourist center at the Miraflores locks, where from several special viewing platforms you can see the locks and the ships passing them, while the loudspeaker tells about each ship, its route and what it transports. There are other tours - on buses along the canal, by rail, walks on small boats; as part of some standard Caribbean cruises, cruise ships ascend the Atlantic slope of the canal through the Gatun locks to the watershed and then return back to the Caribbean Sea (and tourists who wish can pass the rest of the Panama Canal on boats as part of the excursion). But by far the best, most unique, and most enthusiastic way to see the Panama Canal is to transit it entirely on a cruise ship, cross it from the Atlantic to the Pacific (or vice versa), and then cruise further into a very different ocean basin. Absolutely everyone, even the most experienced travelers, prepare for the passage of the Panama Canal in a completely special way.

The direct passage of the Panama Canal takes an average of about 9 hours, not counting the waiting time for ships on huge sea roads from each side. The cruise ship, of course, goes strictly according to the schedule, and goes to the canal immediately, out of turn. Zaandam approaches the Panama Canal Zone at about 5 am. The entrance to the spacious approach water area of ​​the Panama Canal from the Caribbean Sea is marked by powerful lighthouses and protected by many kilometers of dams. At the entrance to the canal in the roadstead, waiting for their turn, there are dozens of ships of all sizes and colors, brightly lit in the night. And on the shore of the bay is the city and port of Colon, with a huge container terminal. The same container terminal is located at the other entrance to the canal - thus, container ships of the "Post-Panamax" class (that is, larger than the locks of the Panama Canal) are unloaded at these entrance ports, containers with cargo are transported along the railway along the canal, and then on the other side they board new ships and continue the route. Also, the railway between the ports is also used for partial unloading of large container ships passing through the canal in order to reduce their draft.

1. Five in the morning, it's just beginning to get light, but most of the tourists are already on their feet: the entrance to the Panama Canal is one of the central events of the cruise! We go into the approaching water area, from the board in the predawn twilight you can see the lights of the port of Colon.

4. Having taken on board a group of pilots, we head to the entrance - from the side of the Caribbean Sea, the Panama Canal begins with a three-stage staircase of Gatun locks, in which ships rise from the level of the Atlantic Ocean to the watershed section of the canal.

5. To the left of the existing two-line locks, since 2007, an additional third line of Panama Canal locks has been built.

They will be significantly larger than the existing ones and will increase the maximum size and draft of ships that can navigate through the canal. If the current locks have dimensions of 304.8 x 33.5 and a depth of 12.8 meters, then the new ones are 427 x 55 x 18.3, respectively. In addition to the construction of the second stage of locks, the fairway is now being widened and deepened at the Culebra watershed, so that two-way traffic of ships becomes possible along the entire length of the canal (now traffic and locking on the Panama Canal is essentially one-way - first a group of ships goes in in one direction, then in the opposite direction, and ships diverge on wider lake sections of the route). Once this massive renovation is completed, the capacity of the Panama Canal will double.

6. Old and new locks of the Panama Canal

9. Longitudinal profile of the Panama Canal

11. At 6-30 in the morning we approach the Gatun locks. The movement of ships along one of the most important transport links in the world is continuous, from the bow of the Zaandam it is clearly visible how four ships rise up the stairs of locks in front of us, two in each thread.

12. On the bank of the canal there are huge gates for the locks under construction of the second stage - they are made in Italy and were delivered to the canal recently, at the end of August 2013.

13. We approach the first gateway. Clumsy sea vessels move from chamber to chamber with the help of special locomotives, to which mooring lines are attached and pulled. Locomotives with stretched mooring lines attached to them accompany the vessel from four sides (at the bow and stern from each side) - thus, the huge sea vessels make an ideally clear entry into a very small chamber compared to their size. Mooring lines from locomotives to the ship are served by a boat.

14. Mooring lines are fixed - let's go! :)

15. We go into the first lock chamber - ships rise from the Caribbean Sea to the watershed section in the three-stage Gatun locks. The total lift height is 26 meters. Accordingly, a little less than nine meters per step. But from the side of a huge sea liner, this nine-meter drop is not perceived as significant.

16. Incredible excitement on the decks!

17. Since the United States finally withdrew from the Panama Canal in 1999, the unique facility has been entirely self-maintained and maintained by Panama. The channel is in safe hands! :)

18. The locomotive, starting the ship from the stern on the starboard side, deftly climbs up. Now the gates will close, and locking will begin.

19. Having risen in the first, we pass into the second chamber.

20. One of the Panama Canal webcams is installed in the Gatun locks, which broadcast the picture on the Internet in real time. At this moment, many of my friends and colleagues are watching us go through the locks. This is what Zaandam slowly rising up the Atlantic slope of the Panama Canal looks like from the side. :)

21. Having completed locking in the third chamber, "Zaandam" rises to the level of the watershed section of the canal. From the stern there is a stunning view of the lock stairs going down and the ships rising up it behind us. The spirit is captivating! Far below stretches the expanse of the Caribbean Sea. And we are in the Pacific Ocean. Goodbye Atlantic! :)

24. Having risen in the Gatun locks, the ship enters the lake of the same name. Gatun Lake is actually a large reservoir formed on the watershed by a large dam on the Chagres River, which is clearly visible on the starboard side.

The canal is supplied with water from Gatun Lake. Such canals, in which a reservoir that feeds them with water, is located on a watershed section, from which water is distributed by gravity to both slopes, are called canals with natural feeding (gravity-flowing). In our country, these are the Volga-Baltic and White Sea-Baltic canals.

25. On Lake Gatun there is another raid of ships waiting for their turn in the locks and waiting for the end of the locking of those who come towards them. When the second stage of the Panama Canal is put into operation, traffic along the entire length of the route will become fully two-way.

26. The path along the Gatun reservoir is approximately half of the entire length of the Panama Canal. We admire the surrounding landscapes of the equatorial belt from the deck.

29. The fairway is not wide and rather winding. The waterway is marked with special buoys.

30. At the Gatun reservoir, there is a divergence of ships going in opposite directions. A caravan of ships is coming towards us, having passed the locks of the Pacific slope in the morning and is now heading towards the Atlantic slope of the canal. Large tankers, dry cargo ships, container ships pass very close by...

35. From the bridges of oncoming cargo ships, Zaandam is also viewed with interest. The passage of cruise ships through the Panama Canal is a fairly rare event.

36. On the left side of the side you can see the confluence of the Chagres River, which is crossed by the bridge. The Gatun Reservoir ends here. Further, the route of the canal passes through the artificially dug Culebra cut.

37. A railroad runs along the route of the Panama Canal, along which containers are transported from the Atlantic port to the Pacific port and vice versa. Sometimes tourist trains run along it.

38. We go through the Culebra notch - the narrowest part of the Panama Canal.

39. In some sections, vessels are escorted along the canal by tugboats. A whole special flotilla of them works on the Panama Canal.

40. In the place where the notch of Culebra crosses a high mountain range, the banks rise steeply in steps, and in the distance the cable-stayed Centennial Bridge is already visible. It was completed in 2004 and became the second permanent bridge across the canal. By the way, bridges across the Panama Canal connect two continents - let's not forget that the Panama Canal not only connects two oceans, but also separates the two Americas. The motto of Panama and the Panama Canal, "A Land Divided - A World United", I think, is understandable without additional translation. Now we have North America on the starboard side, and South America on the port side. :)

41. The slopes of the recess in this place, rising with stone ledges and reinforced with powerful anchors, resemble some fantastic Mayan pyramids. In principle, in terms of its grandeur, the Panama Canal is quite comparable to them. The volume of rocky soil developed during the creation of the Culebra excavation is equal in volume to 63 pyramids of Cheops in Egypt.

43. Shortly after the bridge, the watershed section of the canal ends and the descent to the Pacific Ocean begins, which ships also overcome in three 9-meter steps. But the Pacific slope is a little more gentle - if on the Atlantic slope all three steps are in a row in the Gatun locks, then there are two groups of locks - Pedro Miguel (1 step) and Miraflores (2 steps), separated by a small intermediate pool. So, we go into the gateways of Pedro Miguel.

44. Approximately the same view opens from the captain's bridge. From this perspective, you can clearly see how narrow the lock chamber is compared to the colossal dimensions of ocean-going ships. Even in the presence of locomotives guiding the vessel, the navigators are required to be extremely precise here. All vessels navigate the canal with a group of local pilots.

46. ​​Locomotives drive the Emerald Express tanker into the parallel chamber.

47. At this time on his decks.

48. Having completed the locking in the Pedro Miguel locks, Zaandam enters the small Lake Miraflores, as well as Lake Gatun, formed by the dam. Here we will have to wait a bit - a huge floating crane is being dragged towards us along a parallel string of locks, and for some time ships go only along one thread.

49. We go out into the water area and stop. We'll have to wait half an hour for the ship ahead of us to pass in two chambers, and our turn will come.

50. The ships following us are also waiting - a small traffic jam! :)

51. On the left, a dam on the river is visible, which formed the Miraflores reservoir.

Already the ancient Egyptians built a navigable canal that connected the Nile with the Red Sea. Viscount Ferdinand Marie de Lesseps (1805 - 1894) was a French businessman, politician and diplomat. In 1833 he was consul in Cairo, in 1848-1849 he was ambassador in Madrid. In 1869 he became a member of the French Academy of Sciences. He was the organizer of the construction of the Suez Canal, and in 1875, during a conference of the Paris Geographical Society, he outlined the concept of his new project - the construction of the Panama Canal.

In 1854, when Said Pasha became Viceroy of Egypt, he granted Lesseps a concession to build the Suez Canal. Lesseps considered every detail associated with the opening of the Suez Canal, and managed to correctly arrange it as an unprecedented celebration. Not without festive fireworks, dancing and music; on the occasion of this event, the Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi was ordered an opera (although the composer failed, and the premiere of Aida took place only in 1871).

The opening ceremony was attended by 6,000 invited guests, among whom were many crowned heads from all over the world. A whole flotilla passed through the canal, led by the French yacht "L'Aigle", on board which were the French Empress Eugenie, the ruler of Egypt, the emperors of Russia and Austria, the kings of Prussia and Holland.

Suez canal channel map

The Suez Canal is considered to be the conditional border between Africa and Asia. During its construction, they tried to make the most of natural reservoirs - lakes Timsakh, Big Gorkoye and Small Gorkoye. At the southern entrance to the canal is the city of Suez, and in the north, on the Mediterranean coast, is Port Said.

Suez Canal from satellite

Oil, iron ore, raw materials for the smelting of non-ferrous metals, as well as grain and timber are mainly transported through the Suez Canal. Despite the fact that this waterway goes through a barren desert, it is very popular with tourists.

The Panama Canal crosses the Isthmus of Panama, a narrow strip of land that connects North and South America. At the entrance to the canal from the Pacific Ocean (Gulf of Panama) is the city of Panama, and from the Atlantic Ocean - the port of Colon.

The Panama Canal, which connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, has become one of the most ambitious projects of its time. After the completion of many years of construction, the length of the water corridor was 65 km. The city of Panama was founded by the Spaniards in 1519 as a harbor for ships that brought gold from Peru. The path along which the jewels were transported first went along the western coasts of South America to the narrowest point on the isthmus, which separated the two oceans. Here, treasures were loaded onto mules and the Atlantic coast was transported from the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Pirates often attacked convoys with gold, and in 1671 Henry Morgan dared to attack the city, captured it and burned it to the ground. Spain restored Panama, but in a different place. Today, the Panama Canal is one of the tourist attractions.

Panama Canal on the map

An observation terrace was built especially for tourists, from where you can observe the maneuvers of ocean-going ships when these giants enter the canal bed. The Panama Canal ran through picturesque green hills. Vessels intending to cross the Panama Canal from the Atlantic enter the locks and rise 26 meters to the level of artificial lake Gatun. All lock chambers are paired and designed so that ships that come from opposite sides can sail through the channel at the same time. In August 1914, the first ship passed along the 65-kilometer Panama corridor (together with the coastal part of the Gulf of Panama and Limon Bay, the length of the channel is 81.6 km).

Panama Canal from satellite

Panama is a country located in the southeast of Central America. Its official name is the Republic of Panama with Panama as its capital. The map of the country is as follows: from the north, the state is bounded by the Caribbean Sea, from the south by the Pacific Ocean, from the east it borders with Colombia, from the west - with Costa Rica. The area of ​​the state is 75,420 square kilometers. The country is located on the Isthmus of Panama, which connects South America with Central America. Its mountainous territory is separated only by the Panama Canal (see map).

In contact with

The population of the country is about 4 million people. On January 1, 2014, the province of Western Panama was created, so Panama currently consists of 10 provinces and 5 Amerindian communities. Western Panama is separated from the province of Panama from the east by the Panama Canal.

You can understand where Panama is located on the world map by following the link from Wikipedia: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panam%C3%A1#/media/File:Panama-CIA_WFB_Map.png

Language

According to the Constitution of Panama, Spanish is the official language of the country, and all its inhabitants must know it and have the right to use it. In 2006, Spanish became the native language for 93.1% of the country's population. Other Panamanian languages ​​are taught in educational institutions of the respective administrative units, where the Indians make up the majority of the population.

Beyond Spanish , the following are considered official languages:

Immigrants from other countries, in addition to Spanish, speak their native languages. So, Arabic is spoken by the Syrian and Lebanese colonies in the province of Kolon. English is widely spoken by the African immigrants of the Atlantic coast of the country. There are also large colonies of Chinese, Italians and French.

Panama Canal

The State of Panama, as a country that transits a huge volume of goods through its territory, has become crossroads of cultures from around the world. The Panama Canal was built on the territory of the country, which facilitates communication between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, and plays an important role in world trade. Due to its geographical position, the Panama Canal offers the world a wide range of services:

• marine;
• commercial;
• financial.

Panama Canal, being a route connecting the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean, has a length of 65 km. At both ends of the canal, there are locks designed to raise ships to the level of Lake Gatun, an artificial lake created to reduce the work of digging the canal. The lake is located at an altitude of 26 m above sea level.

The Panama Canal was opened on August 15, 1914 and was able to shorten the time and distance of sea routes, making the commercial and economic exchange between the two oceans more dynamic, and gave a strong impetus to the development of the Central American region and the country. Major states that began to use the channel based on the results of 2012 were the following:

Before the opening of the canal, people used the natural sea routes between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, which were the Strait of Magellan (Argentina), and Cape Oven, located in southern Chile. The Panama Canal is considered one of the largest buildings in the world engineering of the 20th century.

More information about the Panama Canal can be found on the Internet, according to "Panama Wikipedia".

Geography

Climate

The country has a tropical climate, with very high temperatures throughout the year on the coast. Temperatures become less cold as the altitude rises to 1000 m above sea level. Precipitation is high throughout the country, with constant rainfall on the Caribbean coast, while the Pacific coast has a dry period from December to March. Hurricanes do not pose a threat to the country, since it is located in the south of their zone of influence. On the territory of the country there is a zone where trade winds from both hemispheres of the planet meet. This meeting significantly affects the climate of Panama and determines the duration of the wet and dry period in one or another part of the country.

Flora and fauna

Panama is a country with great biological diversity. Due to its proximity to South America, some South American species live on its territory, for example, the capybara, which is the largest rodent in the world, the bespectacled bear and the blue parrot. In the waters belonging to Panama, there are 1497 species of fish, which is more than in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, 957 species of birds and 229 species of mammals. 10,115 species of plants grow on its territory, 229 species of reptiles and 179 species of amphibians live. Enough attention is being paid by the authorities to the conservation of this biological diversity and the control of the level of emissions into the environment.

Tourism

One of the main occupations of the country is tourism. The main tourist arenas of Panama are concentrated on commercial tourism and beaches. Most tourists come here from the USA, Canada, Europe, Central and South America. The annual income from tourism is 1400 million dollars, and this figure is growing rapidly.

In 2013, Panama received 1,527,228 tourists at Tocumen Airport. The average tourist in the country spends $365-$385 per day, which is the highest tourist spending in Central America. On average, a tourist stays in the country for 6-7 days.

During 2011 Panama hosted more than 2 million tourists, which is 18% more than in the previous year. The New York Times magazine ranked Panama as the top country to visit in 2012 as the country experienced its peak economic boom, 12 years after the Isthmus of Panama returned to local control.

Among the sights of the country are the BioMuseum - a center of natural history, which opened in 2014, Casco Antiguo - the ancient part of the city of Panama, declared by UNESCO in 1997 as part of the Heritage of Humanity list and the Bocas de Toro (Bull's Mouth) archipelago, which has become a popular stop for wanderers and vagabond.

For 2018, the following places are included in the list of recommended to visit:

Each of us knows about, which connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, which allows transport companies to save a huge amount of time and money. But even the simplest canal is not just a dug-out ditch between reservoirs, but a complex technical system of locks. Let's try to understand this issue.

The Panama Canal is a collection of locks, a man-made shipping channel created at the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama in Central America. Since its opening in 1920, the Panama Canal is still one of the most complex engineering projects in the world.

Vessels of any type and size can pass through this S-shaped isthmus, from a modest yacht to a large bulk tanker. At present, the throughput size of the channel has become the standard for the construction of ships. As a result, thanks to the locks of the Panama Canal, up to 48 ships pass through it per day, and millions of people in the world enjoy this comfort.

So why do we need locks in the Panama Canal? The question is geographical, and the answer to it is obvious: since the canal consists of several lakes, deepened rivers and man-made channels, and at the same time connects two huge oceans, it is necessary to constantly equalize the water drop along the entire path and regulate the currents. And the water level difference between the canal and the World Ocean is large - 25.9 m. Depending on the size and tonnage of the vessel, the water level in the lock rises or falls, thereby creating the necessary conditions for the vessel to freely navigate the canal.

Features of Panama Canal Locks

Two groups of gateways function in the channel channel. Each gateway is two-line, i.e. can simultaneously ferry ships in oncoming traffic. Although practice shows that ships usually pass in one direction. Each lock chamber holds a maximum of 101 thousand cubic meters. m. of water. The dimensions of the chambers are: width 33.53 m, length 304.8 m, minimum depth - 12.55 m. Large vessels are pulled through the locks by special electric locomotives (“mules”). So, the main locks of the Panama Canal are:

1. In the direction from the Atlantic Ocean three-chamber gateway "Gatun" (Gatun), connecting the same name with Limonskaya Bay. Here, the locks lift the ships up to 26 m to the level of the lake. A camera is installed on the gateway, the image from which you can watch in real time on the Internet.
2. From the Pacific Ocean works two-chamber gateway "Miraflores" (Miraflores) It connects the channel of the main channel with the Bay of Panama. His first gateway also has a video camera installed.
3. Single-chamber gateway "Pedro Miguel" (Pedro Miguel) operates in conjunction with the Miraflores gateway system.
4. Since 2007, work has been underway to expand the channel and install additional gateways to increase the capacity of the Panama Canal (third line). New parameters of the third line: length 427 m, width 55 m, depth 18.3 m. Also, work is underway to expand and deepen the main fairway in order to still carry out the oncoming movement of ships. It is assumed that from 2017 the channel will be able to carry out a double load.

How to look at the locks of the Panama Canal?

A motorway and a railroad track run along the entire canal. You can independently and free of charge follow any vessel and get acquainted with the system of the canal from afar. You can also buy a tourist tour for the same purpose.

The Miraflores Gateway is considered accessible to tourists. You can take a taxi to it or buy a bus ticket for 25 cents, and as a group drive as close as possible to the gateway to get to know its work. includes a visit to the museum ($10) and access to the observation deck, where information about the operation of the gateway is announced in real time over the loudspeaker.