The Italian flagged cargo vessel 'Cielo di Monfalcone' has entered the left lock chamber of the Miraflores Locks. Another cargo vessel is lining up to enter the right lock chamber. The 'Cielo di Monfalcone' was built in 2002, is 186m long, has a beam of 29m and a draft of 11m. The dead weight of this vessel is 37,450t. The current reported position of this vessel is 44.311N, 8.49633E, i.e. it is in Savona, Italy. The building of the Panama Canal was the biggest construction project in modern history until the building of Hoover Dam in 1936. A total of 12 lock chambers were constructed, four at Miralflores, two at Pedro Miguel, (both locks being on the Pacific Ocean side of the Canal), and six lock chambers at Gatun, on the Atlantic Ocean side. The lift of the two-step Miraflores Locks is 16.5m (54-ft). Each lock chamber requires 101,000 cubic meters (26,700,00 US gal) to fill it from the lowered position to raised; the same amount of water must be drained from the chambers to lower it again. Embedded in the side and center walls are three large water culverts, which are used to carry water from the lake into the chambers to raise them, and from each chamber down to the next, or to the sea, to lower them. These culverts start at a diameter of 22-ft (6.71m), and reduce to 18-ft (5.49m) in diameter. Cross culverts branch off from these main culverts, and run underneath the lock chambers to openings in the floors. There are fourteen cross culverts in each chamber, each with five openings; seven cross culverts from the sidewall main culverts alternate with seven from the center wall culvert. The water is moved by gravity, and is controlled by huge valves in the culverts; each cross culvert is independently controlled. A lock chamber can be filled in as little as eight minutes; there is significant turbulence in the lock chamber during this process. The lock chambers are each 33.33m (110-ft) wide and 320.0m (1050-ft) long, with a usable length of 304.8m (1000-ft). The side walls are from 13.7m to 15.2m (45 to 55-ft) thick at the bases; toward the top, where less strength is required , they taper down to 2.4m (8-ft). The center wall between the chambers is 18.3m (60-ft) thick, and houses three long galleries which run the full length of the center wall. The lowest of these is a drainage tunnel; above this is a gallery for electrical cabling; and towards the top is a passage way which allows operators to gain access to the lock machinery. The gates which separate the chambers in each flight must hold back considerable weight of water, and must be both reliable and strong enough to withstand accidents, as a failure of a gate could unleash a catastrophic flood of water downstream. These gates are of enormous size, ranging from 47 to 82-ft (14.33m to 24.99m) high, depending on position, and are 7-ft (2.13m) thick; the tallest gates are required at Miraflores, due to the large tidal range there. The heaviest leaves weigh 662t, the hinges themselves each weigh 16.7t (36,817lb). Each gate has two halves, 65-ft (19.81m) wide, which close to a V shape with the point upstream. Railroad track run along on both sides of each lock chamber. Electric locomotives, called mules, each weighing 55 tons and with two 290hp electric motors, guide ships through the chamber. Their function is to keep the vessel centered within each chamber by means of winches. Forward movement of the vessel is by its on power, or if smaller, by means of a tug. Usually four mules are used per vessel, one on each side at the front and one on each side at the rear. For large vessels eight mules are used (Wikipedia). This picture was taken on 19 July 2011, Sig..