Egypt has the longest river in the world -the Nile. But did you know that it also has the longest canal in the world?
For centuries ships travelling from Europe to Asia had to navigate around the continent of Africa -a journey that lasted many months. The unique geographical position of the Suez Canal makes a connection between the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. This opens up a direct linkage between the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea cutting short the sea voyage by 7000 km and 23 days.
The Suez Canal took 10 years to construct from 1859 to 1869. It has a total length of 193.30 km with two ports -Port Said at its starting point and Port Suez at its end. The SS Dido, owned by Scottish merchant shipping company Anchor Line, passed through it on February 17, 1867, making it the first ship to pass through the Suez. 2022 marks 155 years since this historic day.
The canal can accommodate ships as large as 1, 50,000 tons. The transit time averages about 15 hours. Around 15,000 ships pass through the canal each year, which makes up about 14 per cent of global shipping. The canal is possibly the world’s most useful shortcut, especially for ships operating between Europe and southern Asia, eastern Africa and Oceania.
Picture Credit : Google
