I've been attempting to buy a cross section of one of these cables for a very long time. Anybody got a lead on one?
staticshock 2 hours ago [-]
I can't believe this article does not mention what I think is the most puzzling part of the repair: the delicate process by which the individual fibers are FUSED TOGETHER in a way that maintains near perfect total internal refraction.
tambre 12 minutes ago [-]
You mean fusion splicing? That's common knowledge to anyone that's done any professional fibre cabling and you can easily find reading on it. The specifics of subsea cables however are much more elusive so it makes sense the article focuses on that.
rollulus 35 minutes ago [-]
Do they maintain the original connection between the fibers or is that not worth the effort and is a swap not a problem?
hallole 2 hours ago [-]
This was a good read. I'm obsessed with undersea cables. I consider them one of the wonders of the modern world. Wikipedia says 99% of all internet traffic gets delivered via these ocean-spanning wires, just sitting along the sea floor. Almost unbelievable.
A Neal Stephenson long read about undersea cables. So good!
For anyone who wants to know more about the early history of undersea cables, I also enjoyed ‘A Thread Across the Ocean’ by John Steele Gordon.