Container ship Maersk Bogor passes from Atlantic to Pacific through Miraflores Locks.
The Panama Canal is known as one of the major engineering feats of the 20th century. Completed in 1914, it separated the North and South American continents by cutting through the Isthmus of Panama. The canal shortened many shipping routes thus increasing the efficiency of international maritime trade and contributing to a more connected world.
Miraflores Visitor Center opened in 2000.
The visitor center at Miraflores Locks is the place to watch ships pass through the canal and learn about its construction. Locks at each end of the canal raise ships up to Gatun Lake, created to minimize the excavation needed to build the canal. Increasing traffic and larger ships have prompted the construction of a third, wider and deeper lane of locks due to open in 2016.
Notice the two water levels. The approaching ship needs to be lowered.
The gates have opened to lower the ship.
A ship takes 6 to 8 hours to pass through the 48 miles (77 kilometres) of the canal. A recent issue of the newspaper The Visitor reports on gridlock at the Canal, noting that the time from arrival through waiting time and transit has gone from 24 to 30 hours up to 37 to 80 hours. The same newspaper notes significant progress on construction of the third set of locks.
Museo de la Bioversidad designed by Frank Gehry opened in 2014.
Another, newer attraction, is found on the Amador Causeway, a narrow strip of land built with rock excavated in constructing the canal. Panama’s Museo de la Bioversidad, or Biomuseo for short, was designed by internationally known architect Frank Gehry and opened in 2014.
Sculptures representing the interchange of species when the Americas were joined.
The building itself is a multicoloured sculpture. Inside, five galleries tell the story Panama: Bridge of Life. When the Isthmus of Panama rose from the sea 3 million years ago joining North and South America, it not only allowed for migration of plant and animal species in each direction but changed the flow of ocean and atmospheric currents and affected climate worldwide.
Fossilized teeth from giant shark Megalodon uncovered in excavations for canal expansion.
An attractive park surrounds the Biomuseo. From the park there is a view of the Bridge of the Americas, built in 1962, one of several bridges over the Panama Canal. It crosses the Pacific approach to the canal and ships pass under it as they enter or exit the canal. The Biomuseo also has expansion plans including two large aquariums, one for Pacific and one for Atlantic species. It is due to open in 2017.
A traditional Panamanian palm house in the park surrounding the Biomuseo.
Bridge of the Americas crosses the Panama Canal at the Pacific.
Travelling across the Bridge of the Americas.