Cable clutter

Underwater cables are one of the lifelines of the global economy. Time and again, dubious incidents occur on the seabed.

Pipelines on the seabed have been in the news recently. But what about the other underwater infrastructure, the telecommunications, supply and energy cables, here and in the hotspots of the earth? In 1858, the first transatlantic submarine cable was put into operation between the USA and Europe. Since then, 600 submarine communication cables have been laid worldwide, totalling four million kilometres in length, through which, among other things, 97 percent of all Internet data is transported. Compared to these fixed connections, communication via satellite is around fifteen times more expensive.

Submarine cables as part of the information and energy infrastructure were not only laid because they provide a direct and low-loss connection between two locations. Furthermore