Cruise: Panama Canal : Fast Facts on the Big Ditch

On budget: At the time, the Panama Canal was the costliest project in U.S. history. It came in $23 million under budget and opened six months early.

Dirt deficit: More than 232 million cubic yards of rock and dirt were excavated from the canal, enough to fill a train circling the earth four times at the Equator.

Mass transit: More than 770,000 vessels have passed through the canal. About 12,000 ships made the transit last year; 216 were passenger ships carrying 152,898 people.

Lake minded: To create Gatun Lake, 164 square miles of jungle and villages (an area three times the size of Long Beach) were submerged under water.