Have you ever wondered how ships get from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean? Prior to 1914, ships had to sail via the Drake Passage and Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America. It was a long trip that involved strong winds, large waves, strong currents, and even icebergs, which made the route very dangerous for ships.

A canal that would connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was the logical answer to make the route shorter and safer. Panama was chosen because it was the narrowest country in the Americas. The French started building the canal in 1881 but failed. An estimated 22,000 people died from disease and accidents. In 1904, the United States took over the building of the canal. They used a system of locks to solve the problem of building a canal through areas with different levels of elevation. The Panama Canal opened in 1914. The 82-kilometer (51-mile) canal made travel by ship much safer, although a total of 27,600 people had died while building it. The United States handed management of the canal over to Panama in 1977. By then, it had long been an essential route for shipping cargo around the world.

Throughout the 20th century, increasingly larger ships were being used to transport cargo. Therefore, Panama decided to expand the canal so these larger ships could fit through it. After spending US$5.25 billion, the expansion was completed in 2016. This expansion widened and deepened the canal to allow passage of the new larger cargo ships.

The Panama Canal was a bold project that sought to make travel and shipping both safer and more efficient. It also became an essential part of world shipping routes. From its inception to its completion and later expansion, the canal may be considered a modern technological marvel, which has permanently changed the pattern of sea travel.

你是否想過，船舶是怎麼從大西洋航行到太平洋的呢？在1914年之前，船舶必須航行至南美 洲南端，繞過德雷克海峽與合恩角才辦得到。這樣一趟漫長的航程，會經歷強風大浪、洶湧洋流、甚至是冰山。對船舶而言，這條航線可說是危機四伏。

為了縮短航程、讓往返的船舶更安全，開闢一條連接大西洋與太平洋的運河，就是最合理的 解決之道。巴拿馬是美洲最狹窄的國家，因而雀屏中選。法國人率先於1881年建造運河卻未果。施工期間，約有兩萬兩千人死於疾病和意外事故。1904年，美國接手運河的修建工程。他們以船閘系統，解決了在不同海平面地區修建運河的問題。巴拿馬運河於1914年正式啟用。儘管施工期間的總死亡人數約為27,600人，這條全長82公里（51英里）的運河讓航運更加安全。1977年，美國將運河管理權移交給巴拿馬。當時，巴拿馬運河早已成為來往世界各地海運的必要航線。

20世紀以來，用來運輸貨物的船舶越來越龐大。因此，巴拿馬決定拓寬運河，好讓更大型的 貨運船得以通過。斥資52億又5000萬美金後，拓寬工程終於在2016年竣工，不僅拓寬了運河的寬度，也加深了運河的深度，讓體積更龐大的新型貨運船得以暢行無阻。

巴拿馬運河這項考驗膽識的工程，力求提高旅行和貨運的安全性與效率，更成為全球海運航 線的要角。從開鑿到竣工，再到後續的拓寬，堪稱現代工程奇蹟的巴拿馬運河，已就此改變航海模式。