THE INTERNET'S REAL BACKBONE: UNDERSEA CABLES

Ted Stevens' 2006 description of the internet as a "series of tubes" was more literal than his critics realized. Fiber-optic cables running across ocean floors carry the vast majority of international data traffic, making them essential to modern telecommunications. The vulnerability of this infrastructure became apparent in 2022 when a volcanic eruption near Tonga severed the island nation's undersea cables, cutting off internet access for an extended period. Similar incidents have occurred worldwide, from ship anchors damaging cables to undersea earthquakes disrupting connections. As digital infrastructure continues to expand globally, the reliance on these underwater networks only increases. Tech companies, telecom operators, and governments are investing in redundancy and protection measures, but the inherent fragility of the system remains a critical consideration for internet reliability.