The Panama Canal extends (延伸)approximately (大约) 50 miles from Panama City on the Pacific Ocean to Colon on the Caribbean Sea. It is widely considered to be one of the world's great engineering (工程) achievements.







The United States is the largest user of the Canal in terms of cargo tonnage (吨位), as either port of origin (起始地) or destination (目的地), although Asian countries are beginning to close the gap (差距). About 12% of U.S. sea-borne international trade, in terms of tonnage, passes through the Canal annually (每年). Ships bound for (驶往) Japan from the East Coast of the United States save about 3,000 miles by going through the Canal; ships sailing from Ecuador (厄瓜多尔) to Europe save about 5,000 miles.



Two ships pass through the Miraflores locks on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal, one in each direction. The tug (绳索) keeps a ship centered as it passes through a lock.



Arriving at the first set of 3 locks, HEALY was carefully maneuvered (移动) into place using electrically-powered "camels". These camels controlled HEALY's movement in the locks, keeping her centered in the lock as the water level changed. Overall, the crew (船员) was impressed with (印象深刻) the engineering and sheer (完全)size of the locks.



Gatun Lake stores water to make the Panama Canal locks work. Water flows by gravity to raise the level in the lock chamber. Water is released to lower the level.