Lock (water Transport)
A lock is a device for raising and lowering boats between stretches of water of different levels on river and canal waterways. The distinguishing feature of a lock is a fixed chamber in which the water level can be varied; whereas in a caisson lock, a boat lift, or on a canal inclined plane, it is the chamber itself (usually then called a caisson) that rises and falls.
Locks are used to make a river more easily navigable, or to allow a canal to take a reasonably direct line across land that is not level.
Read more about Lock (water Transport): Pound Lock, Use of Locks in River Navigations, Use of Locks in Canals, Basic Construction and Operation, Details and Terminology, Variations, Use of Water, Alternatives, Ship Sizes Named After Locks
Famous quotes containing the word lock:
“They learned to rattle the lock and key
To give whatever might chance to be,
Warning and time to be off in flight:”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)