Melissa’s Soapbox

The Panama Canal is made up of three sets of locks systems:  Miraflores (2 chambers) and Pedro Miguel (1 chamber) are situated near the Pacific coast and Gatun (3 chambers) along the Atlantic.  Ships are raised a total of 87 feet above see level into Gatun Lake and then lowered at the end of their transit into the other ocean.  A common misconception is that one ocean is higher than the other, but in fact, sea level is sea level.  However, the Pacific coast experiences extreme tidal variation oftentimes as high as 20 feet, whereas the Atlantic experiences far less (only about 6 inches).  These tidal factors, along with Panama’s 200 inches of annual rainfall and the raging Chagres River, solidified the decision to build a lock system canal in lieu of dredging out a sea level canal.

About one mile long and with the tallest lock gates, the set of Miraflores Locks is situated on the Pacific entrance of the Canal in close proximity to Panama City.  As vessels enter the Miraflores Locks (sometimes with assistance from land-based electric cars on either side of the canal), 26 million gallons of water is transferred by force of gravity in about 7 minutes (faster than a bathtub drains) to raise or lower the ships 27 feet per chamber.

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