The giant Falkirk Wheel ship lift has been built in Scotland. It connects the country's two main waterways. The giant chute, which receives water from the upper channel, breaks off at a level of 24 meters, and the ships literally hang in the air corridor at the height of an 8-storey building.
Falkirk Wheel Is a unique embodiment of engineering. Everything ingenious is simple - Archimedes' law in action. The design resembles two buckets connected to each other. A ship enters one of them and needs to go down or go up the canal. Both containers are balanced, then additional water is poured into the upper bucket, and under the force of gravity it goes down.
Initially, there were two canals, 11 locks were used to cross them, and a distance of 3 kilometers was covered by ships in 9 hours! In 1998, the stunning Millennium Link project was approved to create a system that would speed up navigation. Was built a waterway connecting the east and west of Scotland. Nature itself gave the ideas for the creation of the Falkirk Wheel. In its shape, the unique design resembles a fish ridge, a whale's ribcage, or a Celtic double-headed ax.
The various parts of the Falkirk Wheel were built and assembled as one giant construction set for children. The shaped steel elements were meticulously assembled and thousands of bolts and nuts were riveted by hand.
The boat lift has become a national landmark and tourists from all over the world flock there to cruise around shipping channel and experience the sensation of flight and weightlessness for yourself.