Watch this amazing time-lapse showing how ships get through the Panama Canal

A video released from the US Coast Guard shows how one of its vessels travels through the Panama Canal. The Canal is a complex system that utilizes an artificial lake to help ships traverse between the Continental divide. Following is a transcript of the video.

The Panama Canal is an engineering marvel. About 14,000 ships use it every year. The canal is about 48 miles long. It functions as a waterway between North and South America. The canal connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans

Before the canal, ships had to sail 13,000 miles around the tip of South America An artificial lake across Panama connects the oceans. The Gatun Lake is 85 feet above sea level. How do the ships get raised and lowered?

The canal has a water lock system that acts like a massive elevator. When ships enter the locks, they're raised by water from the lake. Each lock raises the ships until they're 85 feet above sea level. They then travel across Gatun Lake.

The ship is then lowered by the locks to sea level. On average, it takes 8 hours for ships to cross the canal.