Chapter 02 of 5
The Armor & The Abyss
Surviving the deep: How we build glass strands to withstand the ocean floor.
- The Core
Strands of Hair
Global data travels via ultra-pure glass fibers no thicker than a human hair. These fragile strands carry nearly all transcontinental traffic.
- Material Science
The Inner Shield
Fibers are coated in a protective plastic layer, then encased in a petroleum jelly buffer to prevent water ingress.
- Engineering Feat
Copper and Steel
To survive the pressure, the core is wrapped in high-tensile steel wires and a copper tube that carries electricity to power repeaters.
17 more cards in this chapter
Could you answer this?
What common predator was notoriously filmed biting undersea cables, leading to the use of Kevlar shielding?
⚓ The Undersea Backbone
- 01The 1858 Leap of FaithThe Victorian era's desperate attempt to bridge the Atlantic via telegraph.
- 02The Armor & The AbyssSurviving the deep: How we build glass strands to withstand the ocean floor.
- 03Sabotage in the DarkSubmarine warfare and the terrifying fragility of international data.
- 04The Tech Giant TakeoverHow Big Tech bought the ocean to build private global highways.
- 05The Global Choke PointsCritical vulnerabilities and the islands that hold the world's data.