Networks

May 9, 2022

Settle In for Some Submarine Cable Trivia

Have you been playing the secret cable trivia hosted on our interactive submarine cable map?

If you haven’t, look for the icon in the bottom left-hand corner of the map. Submit the correct answer and you’ll be entered to win a free submarine cable map in our monthly drawing.

In February, we released the answers to our first three questions. Now it’s time to reveal a new batch of answers.

Apr 25, 2022

One Small Step for Man, One Giant Leap for Mapkind

No, that wasn’t a typo. NASA is teaming up with lidar company Aeva to 3D map the moon—a tricky feat without GPS.

If you’re a map lover like us, this ought to grab your attention.

The prototype is small enough for an astronaut to wear as a backpack and able to map its surroundings in real time. 

Mar 31, 2022

Can a Park Bench Boost 5G?

As India’s long-awaited 5G deployment draws nearer, a new pilot program may prompt you to look at ordinary objects—like lampposts, mailboxes, and park benches—much differently.

This program will equip street furniture with small cell networks across four different locations: Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation, Kandla Port in Gujarat, and Bhopal city.

Mar 14, 2022

Submarine Networks and the Digital Transformation of East Africa

Before 2009, only 16 African countries were connected to a submarine cable system.

But in 2016, submarine cable capacity reached 33 countries; seven sub-Saharan countries had access to three or more systems.

Today, Africa leads the globe in international bandwidth growth. This has been facilitated by improved international connectivity along the critical Europe-to-India-and-Asia submarine corridor that connects East Africa to the rest of the world.

Our own Paul Brodsky will be joining forces with Ciena and Djibouti Telecom on March 23 at 11:00 a.m. ET for a live discussion on this topic.

Mar 9, 2022

Submarine Cable Growth: Fashions from Yesteryear

We recently shared the pricing workshop and interconnection sector review our team presented at PTC '22.

But wait—there's more!

TeleGeography VP of Research Tim Stronge was on the scene to answer three questions about the submarine cable buildout boom.

Mar 1, 2022

What to Know About Fiber’s Role in Ukraine’s Information War

With all eyes on Kyiv, videos like this one from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have made a monumental impact on the world’s ability to understand conditions on the ground.

Ukrainians are using their mobile phones to share the sights and sounds of Russia’s invasion, posting to platforms like Twitter, Telegram, and TikTok. These images may have already played a critical role in galvanizing public opinion in the EU, North America, and elsewhere.

How do tweets and videos from Ukraine reach the rest of the world?

Here are a few things to understand about the networks that have allowed Ukrainians to share their stories.

Feb 16, 2022

New State of the Network Report Examines Telecom in a Time of COVID-19

Believe it or not, with 2022 comes our fifth State of the Network Report.

If this is your first State of the Network rodeo, think of this e-book as an annual telecom check-in, informed by another year of data collection and analysis from TeleGeography’s larger research portfolio.

As usual, we extract the major global bandwidth headlines, take a snapshot of the global internet, peruse the latest in data centers, check in on the cloud, and finish with an update from the voice market.

There’s no other way to put it. This State of the Network Report is a weird one.

Feb 14, 2022

Love Is Brewing—and So Is Another Geomagnetic Storm

Happy Valentine's Day to you, beloved reader. Or Discount Candy Day Eve, as some of us like to say.

Love hurts, after all. But for a recently-launched fleet of Starlink satellites, a geomagnetic storm hurts even more.

Feb 3, 2022

How Well Do You Know Your Submarine Cables?

You're a master of our submarine cable FAQs. You know how many cables there are. You know how thick they are. You could take on the next generation of submarine cable experts in a head-to-head knowledge battle. 

It sounds like you're ready for the next level of cable know-how.

Jan 28, 2022

A Volcanic Eruption Cut Tonga's Only Undersea Cable Connection

Cable faults happen fairly often and for a variety of reasons.

Most of the time, damage to submarine cables comes from human activity—primarily fishing and anchoring. But environmental factors can also cause a cable to break. 

This just happened in Tonga, where an underwater volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami damaged the country's only undersea cable. Early reports indicate that it could be a few weeks before the necessary repairs are made. More on that below.