http://www.ripe.net/projects/reports/2008cable-cut/index.html

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Mediterranean Fibre Cable Cut – a RIPE NCC Analysis

Analysis by the RIPE NCC Science Group with contributions from Roma Tre University.
Editors: Rene Wilhelm, Chris Buckridge

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The history of submarine telecommunications cables goes back to 1850 when the first international telegraph link between England and France was established. Eight years later the first trans-Atlantic telegraph cable linked Europe to North America.

In the 20th century telephony became the driving force for submarine cable deployments. TAT-1, the first trans-Atlantic telephone cable, was installed in 1956; it had the capacity to transmit 36 analog phone channels simultaneously. These days fibre-optic submarine cables carry the bulk of the trans-oceanic voice and data traffic. Maximum capacity is now in the order of 1 Tb/s, equivalent to 15 million old analog phone calls. Compared to satellites, submarine cables offer higher capacity and, because of the shorter distance, feature much better latencies.

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http://gcaptain.com/maritime/blog/tag/undersea-cable/