The mammoth ship, which measures 1,040 feet in length and weighs a whopping 122,000 tonnes, was making its way from the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenberg to start on her maiden voyage.

At one point it was such a narrow fit the 121-foot wide ocean liner had as few as two feet on either side of her as she eased through, during a rite of passage known as the conveyance.

What’s more the depth of the river and the draft of the ship allowed for mere inches – or even less – beneath her.

With such a narrow margin for error the makers of the ship and the shipyard owners had to carefully monitor the position of the moon and tidal conditions to identify the precise time when the depth of the river would be sufficient for the ship to pass through.

Captain Panagiotis Skylogiannis said: ‘Although I am accustomed to docking in tight ports, I prefer to be chasing sunshine in the open sea.

‘Celebrity Eclipse is only a few feet slimmer than the narrowest lock we have to navigate, which isn’t much room.

‘But we’ve done this twice before and I am entirely confident of another smooth and successful passage.’

The ship is the third of five from Celebrity Cruises’ $3.7billion Solstice Class fleet and features a ten restaurants and even a glass blowing studio.

The company’s fleet sail in Alaska, California, Canada/ New England, the Pacific Coast, Panama Canal, South America and the Caribbean.

Construction on what would become the world’s longest marine causeway, connecting Qatar and Bahrain, is due to begin next year, and what a project it is: We’re talking about a bridge more than 13 miles long, costing around $3 billion.

Somewhat adorably named the Qatar-Bahrain Friendship Causeway, this massive bridge is expected to take around 4.5 years to complete and cost somewhere between $2.3 and $3 billion, but should be a great help for travel between Qatar and Bahrain. The trip currently takes more than four hours and will be reduced to 30 minutes on the bridge, and those in charge expect 10,000 to 20,000 vehicles per day to use it.

For a sense of scale, here’s a chart that compares the bridge to other very large things. Of course, I need a scale chart to tell how big a blue whale is, which sort of defeats the purpose of measuring this bridge in blue whales, but still: This is one large bridge.

Preparations for the Shanghai World Expo 2010 are heating up and many countries are getting in on the action by designing structures for the space. We couldn’t help but be dazzled by the Shanghai Corporate Pavilion by Atelier Feichang Jianzhu, but we were even more impressed to learn that the fascinating building is composed of thousands of plastic tubes made from used CD cases! Read on to find out what other green features the pavilion is incorporating besides the extensive use of recycled materials.

The impressive exterior structure is composed of hundreds of polycarbonate transparent recycled plastic tubes formed into a grid-like matrix. Recycled from used CD cases, the polycarbonate tubes will be able to be recycled again at the end of the building’s life. Multi-colored LED lights will be built into the exterior structure and be computer controlled to change the appearance of the exterior on a whim or based on a computer program.

Energy will be collected through a 1,600 sq meter solar thermal energy system of heat collecting tubes on the roof. This system will heat water up to 95ºF and will be used to generate electricity through ultra-low temperature power generation, which is similar to power generation from low-temperature geothermal reservoirs. This energy will be used for the both the exposition as well as every day power needs.

A misting system will also add to the structures appearance and help give it a dream like feel. It can be sprayed in various patterns under the entrance ceiling to give the building a fresh and elegant appearance. The mist will also help lower the temperature, purify the air and create a comfortable climate in pavilion. Mist and some water use inside the building will come from collected rainwater, which will be treated for sedimentation and then filtered and stored.

Next year’s World Expo in Shanghai should be an exciting event showcasing many sustainable buildings, technologies and ideas. The Shanghai Corporate Pavilion looks like an intriguing and original addition.

Shopkeepers block the entrance of their shop with a wood panel as water rises in the streets of Venice.

A man wades through the Piazza San Marco during floods.

A view of a flooded dock area of Venice.

Tourists wade through flood waters in a shopping district of Venice.

Women sit on a table while water rises in their shoe shop during floods.