Undersea Internet Cable: Internet connectivity may also be at risk due to the ongoing war between America, Israel and Iran. Some unverified reports say that Iran has threatened to damage the internet cables laid in the Red Sea. Although this has not been officially confirmed by Iran, the possibility of damage to these cables in the war has increased. Today we will know what is the danger of internet cable breaking amid this war that has been going on for almost a month and what are the strengths and weaknesses of these cables.
Fragile system of Internet cable surrounded by rust
Internet cables passing through war zones handle a large portion of Internet traffic. At present, the depth of the sea at many places in the Strait of Hormuz, which became the main cause of war, is only 200 feet. Internet cables laid at this depth are very easy to access and damage. If these get damaged even by mistake, the loss will be huge. This will not only affect internet connectivity, but due to the war, it may take a long time to repair them.
Have these cables been damaged before?
According to reports, in 2024, several cables laid in the Red Sea were damaged in an attack related to Houthi activities. Due to this, internet speed became slow in many parts of Asia and Africa. It also took a lot of time to repair these cables.
What is the strength of these cables passing through the sea?
- These cables can also safely withstand tsunami, marine animal, volcano and shark attack.
- They are designed for high bandwidth and low latency.
- They are much cheaper for data transmission than satellite.
- Their tensile strength is higher than copper and steel wire, which makes it difficult to break.
- They are flexible and light and their life span is about 25 years.
What are their weaknesses?
- These are not successful in places where incidents like mudslides occur more often.
- Installing them is quite difficult and time consuming.
- If damage occurs, it may take weeks to months to repair.
- A regular repeater is required to boost the signal.
- In war-like situations, they can be used for espionage.
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