Submarine communications cable

A submarine communications cable is a cable laid on the ocean floor to carry telecommunication signals between continents. These cables are crucial for international communication, as they facilitate the vast majority of global data transfer, including internet, phone calls, and other forms of communication.

This is how they normally operate:

1. Design: Submarine cables are designed to endure the severe circumstances found on the ocean below. They are made up of multiple layers, such as insulating layers, signal-transmitting conductive materials, and protecting layers.
2. Installation: Using specialized ships, the cable is laid along the seabed during installation. To avoid impediments like undersea mountains, trenches, and other cables, the process needs to be carefully planned. To prevent damage, the cables are buried beneath the seafloor after they have been placed.
3. Transmission: Optical fibres are used by submarine cables to carry data. Light pulses that constitute digital information are carried by these fibres. To ensure that signals may travel great distances without losing strength, repeaters are positioned along the cable route.
4. Connection Points: At landing points throughout coastal regions, submarine cables link to terrestrial networks. The data entry and exit points for the submerged cable network are these landing stations.
5. Reliability: Among the most dependable means of long-distance communication are submarine cables. Compared to satellite communication, they are less vulnerable to disruptions brought on by inclement weather or other environmental conditions. Nonetheless, natural calamities like earthquakes, fishing operations, and ship anchors can still harm them.
6. Capacity: Modern submarine cables can transmit many terabits of data per second, demonstrating the great capacity of submarine cables. In order to fulfil the increasing need for data communication, new cables with even more capacity are constantly being deployed as technology develops.

Submitted by-

Chandra Kumar Sahu

Assistant Professor

Department of Electrical Engineering

Email – chandra.kumar.sahu@kalingauniversity.ac.in