To move cargo and passenger ships through the water in the shortest way, in order to reduce time, labor and material costs, artificial waterways - channels were laid. Today, existing hydraulic structures have a significant impact on the development of commercial shipping and the economy of the countries to which they belong. In this article, we'll take a look at some of the world's most important shipping channels.
White Sea-B altic Canal
One of the longest shipping routes is located in Russia, in particular on the territory of the Republic of Karelia, and it is called the White Sea-B altic. The canal connected the White Sea within the boundaries of the city of Belomorsk and Lake Onega near the village of Povenets and allows ships to move further into the B altic Sea.
The shipping route stretches for 227 km with a minimum fairway depth of 4 meters and a width of 36 meters. During its construction, more than 120 hydraulic structures were erected, including 19airlock.
The history of the construction of the White Sea-B altic Canal is very tragic, because it was built by the forces of prisoners, the number of which, according to some estimates, reached 280 thousand. The waterway was laid using only manual labor and was put into operation in less than two years in August 1933.
Volga-Don Shipping Canal
From Volgograd to Kalach-on-Don stretched one of the canals of Russia - the Volga-Don named after V. I. Lenin. He connected the two largest rivers - the Volga and the Don. The channel extends for about 101 km, of which 45 km are reservoirs. The minimum depth of the shipping channel was 3.5 meters.
To completely overcome the waterway from the Volga to the Don, ships have to face the passage of thirteen lock structures. They represent the Volga and Don lock stairs. The height of the first reaches 88 meters and includes nine single-chamber single-line locks, and the second rises to 44.5 meters and consists of four locks of a similar design.
Dimensions of lock chambers - 145×18 meters. The distance between the locks ranges from 700 m on the Volga slope to 20 km on the Don slope. The canal is laid along the Bereslavsky, Varvarovsky and Karpovsky artificial reservoirs. The time of passage of the water area by ships is 10-12 hours.
Panama Canal
You can safely guess the location of the next shipping channel by its name - this is the Panama Canal,which spread over the territory of a small and amazingly beautiful country located in two parts of the world at once - Panama. The canal is recognized as one of its most important attractions. In addition, it is positioned as a unique monument to the perseverance and heroism of the people who built it.
The shipping channel was created to reduce the length of sea routes, following which, it was necessary to go around the South American continent.
Taking into account the terrain, the artificial channel is not laid in a straight line, but bends, so its length is 81.5 kilometers. About 65 kilometers were built on land, and the remaining 16.4 kilometers were laid along the bottom of the Panama and Limon bays to enable ships to reach great depths. The total width is 150 m, in lock chambers it is 33 m, and the depth is 12 m. On June 12, 1920, the canal was officially opened.
Corinth Canal
The narrowest navigable canal in the world, the Corinth Canal, is characterized by its smallest length. It is located on the territory of the famous Hellas and was built on the Isthmus of Corinth to connect the two seas - the Aegean and the Ionian. The canal made it possible to shorten the sea route by 400 km by eliminating the need to bypass the Peloponnese peninsula. At the same time, an artificial channel separated the aforementioned peninsula from the mainland.
The Corinth Canal was built in 12 years, between 1881 and 1893. The construction involved about two and a half thousand workers, who were recruited throughout Greece. The length of the water route,cut through the mainland and resembling a deep canyon, approaches six kilometers, and the height of the sheer walls reaches 76 m. The width of the channel at sea level is 25 meters, and at the seabed - 21 m.
A century after its completion, it has somewhat lost its economic importance due to its width. This fact was also facilitated by the erosion of the walls, the possibility of landslides, as well as the construction of large ocean-going vessels, the width of which exceeds 20 meters. The latter makes it impossible for them to pass through the channel. Now the narrowest shipping channel has become a tourist attraction for cruise ships and small boats.
Suez Canal
A bewitching sight - giant ships and tankers are slowly sailing through the lifeless desert! And all this thanks to the Suez Canal, which connected the Red and Mediterranean Seas and conditionally divided the two continents of Africa and Eurasia. The waterway is located on the territory of modern Egypt, west of the Sinai Peninsula. Its length is 160 km, the width at the lower points varies between 45-60 meters, and along the surface of the water it reaches 350 m.
The opening of the canal in the second half of November 1869 allowed ships to move between Europe and Asia by a shorter route, bypassing the African continent. The highlight of the canal is that it extends over a flat terrain where there is no need to build locks, so sea water moves freely through it.
Middle German Canal
Germany also has its own shipping route. It is called the Middle German Canal and is an important full-flowing artery, connecting the Rhine through the watercourses of Dortmund-Ems and Rhine-Herne with the major rivers of the state, including the Weser, Elbe, Ems, Oder, as well as several lakes.
The length of the Middle German Canal is 325.7 km. It is popular for its extremely picturesque coastal views, which attract a large number of people here. In addition to the surroundings, connoisseurs of the green landscape can also enjoy the beauty of the bridges and exotic buildings designed to ferry ships. The most popular on the canal are the Minden and Magdeburg channels, which to this day attract crowds of tourists and connoisseurs of beauty.
