Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has announced plans for the world’s longest undersea cable. The line will stretch for 50,000km and will link Brazil, India, South Africa and the US.
“Project Waterworth”, as the scheme is called, will be a multi-billion dollar and multi-year investment according to Meta, and will use cables with 24 fibre-pairs. Previously, cables have used between eight and 16 pairs.
The lines will be buried beneath coastal shelves to avoid being damaged by anchors.
Project Waterworth will deploy cables about twice as long as the circumference of the Earth, including in three previously unused oceanic corridors.
Meta says that the project will bolster the use of AI, digital communication, videos and online transactions.
Undersea cables carry 95% of intercontinental internet traffic, with the remainder handled by satellites.
- Subscribe here to get stories about construction around the world in your inbox three times a week
Further Reading:
Story for GCR? Get in touch via email: [email protected]
