5 ms·

I know this is probably a slight tangent to the article, but I is anyone else fascinated by underwater cabling? My first job out of university is working on th

I know this is probably a slight tangent to the article, but I is anyone else fascinated by underwater cabling? My first job out of university is working on the USNS Zeus for Military Sealift Command. I've been out on the ship and we're working directly with the cable handling equipment. I've walked in the big empty vats they fill with the cable. It's over 25 feet deep and 20 feet wide. They actually "walk" the cable up to prevent it from getting tangled. Seriously!! SO COOL!! I would love to post pictures, but I like my job a little bit too much to risk it.

techdragon 11y ago
Any comparable pics you can link to? Perhaps some PR photos already exist on wikimedia commons.
- jsmthrowaway 11y ago
  They're usually not very secret, and you probably just have to search around a bit. Here's the cable bin on an unidentified ship: http://imgur.com/Oc24DNN http://imgur.com/Oc24DNN
- MrApathy 11y ago
  There's a TV show called "Mighty Ships" that profiles various larger ships (mostly commercial, though some passenger or military). One episode focuses on the Tyco Resolute, a cable laying ship: http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/mighty-ships/tyco-resolute/809/3399767 http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/mighty-ships/tyco-re... The full version used to be on YouTube.
- rwmurrayVT 11y ago
  I have attached a few photos that were released by MSC. The first link is a general directory for the entire T-ARC fleet. The USNS Zeus (T-ARC-7) is the only remaining cable laying ship in the Navy. Another cool thing you can do is use the 3rd link to track a lot of the ship! The Zeus is currently underway in Bermuda. It's not on a mission right now AFAIK. If it goes dark you know it's on a mission for a more secure cable line. I can confirm that the drum linked above is not on the Zeus. The Zeus has two huge drums like that, but they are below main deck. The Zeus also has a cool as fuck hat that I really want, but so far no crew will give me one. A unidentified high officer said he would give me his if I kept the steering wheel for him after it's removal. Sadly, that'll be in the possession of NASSCO/Shipyard and then MSC after the work. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/27/27idx.htm http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/27/27idx.htm http://www.msc.navy.mil/PM4/images/Zeusatsea2.jpg http://www.msc.navy.mil/PM4/images/Zeusatsea2.jpg http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-70/centery:41/zoom:3 http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-70/centery...
losvedir 11y ago
Neal Stephenson has a great little non-fiction piece on these cables, both overland and undersea, talking about the process of laying them down and negotiating what countries they go through, etc. It was unexpectedly tucked into the end of my version of Cryptonomicon, but it might be available separately. I agree, I'm fascinated as well.
- oneubauer 11y ago
  It was originally published in wired. It is indeed a great write up on the topic! http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/ http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/
  - pmarreck 11y ago
    At the time that was one of the greatest nonfiction pieces I had ever read about
  - peterburkimsher 11y ago
    That literally just took me a week's worth of free time to read. Absolutely worth it. Several years ago I read a short book with a similar theme: The Victorian Internet by Tom Standage. Another inspiration to me was a 25 minute video about the HVDC lien linking North and South Island in New Zealand. https://hackaday.com/2015/08/19/retrotechtacular-one-does-not-simply-string-up-a-half-million-vdc-transmission-line/ https://hackaday.com/2015/08/19/retrotechtacular-one-does-no... I wonder if anybody will make a popular game out of estimating cable slack?
- deleted 11y ago
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- deleted 11y ago
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yelnatz 11y ago
Yea, I was pretty shocked when I learned about this when I was young. "So you're telling me there's literally cables under the sea that connects continents together?" http://i.imgur.com/f6V2jab.gifv http://i.imgur.com/f6V2jab.gifv
pmarreck 11y ago
In case you never read the famous Wired piece by Neal Stephenson on this topic: http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/ http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/
coleca 11y ago
There is a great book, called "Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet". It's about the plumbing of the Internet that covers pretty much all the physical aspects of what make the Internet including the undersea cables. The author even watched them land a new undersea cable. It's a quick read. http://amzn.com/0061994952 http://amzn.com/0061994952
theandrewbailey 11y ago
Map: http://submarinecablemap.com/ http://submarinecablemap.com/

techdragon 11y ago

Any comparable pics you can link to? Perhaps some PR photos already exist on wikimedia commons.

jsmthrowaway 11y ago
They're usually not very secret, and you probably just have to search around a bit. Here's the cable bin on an unidentified ship: http://imgur.com/Oc24DNN http://imgur.com/Oc24DNN
MrApathy 11y ago
There's a TV show called "Mighty Ships" that profiles various larger ships (mostly commercial, though some passenger or military). One episode focuses on the Tyco Resolute, a cable laying ship: http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/mighty-ships/tyco-resolute/809/3399767 http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/shows/mighty-ships/tyco-re... The full version used to be on YouTube.
rwmurrayVT 11y ago
I have attached a few photos that were released by MSC. The first link is a general directory for the entire T-ARC fleet. The USNS Zeus (T-ARC-7) is the only remaining cable laying ship in the Navy. Another cool thing you can do is use the 3rd link to track a lot of the ship! The Zeus is currently underway in Bermuda. It's not on a mission right now AFAIK. If it goes dark you know it's on a mission for a more secure cable line. I can confirm that the drum linked above is not on the Zeus. The Zeus has two huge drums like that, but they are below main deck. The Zeus also has a cool as fuck hat that I really want, but so far no crew will give me one. A unidentified high officer said he would give me his if I kept the steering wheel for him after it's removal. Sadly, that'll be in the possession of NASSCO/Shipyard and then MSC after the work. http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/27/27idx.htm http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/27/27idx.htm http://www.msc.navy.mil/PM4/images/Zeusatsea2.jpg http://www.msc.navy.mil/PM4/images/Zeusatsea2.jpg http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-70/centery:41/zoom:3 http://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:-70/centery...

losvedir 11y ago

Neal Stephenson has a great little non-fiction piece on these cables, both overland and undersea, talking about the process of laying them down and negotiating what countries they go through, etc. It was unexpectedly tucked into the end of my version of Cryptonomicon, but it might be available separately. I agree, I'm fascinated as well.

oneubauer 11y ago
It was originally published in wired. It is indeed a great write up on the topic! http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/ http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/
- pmarreck 11y ago
  At the time that was one of the greatest nonfiction pieces I had ever read about
- peterburkimsher 11y ago
  That literally just took me a week's worth of free time to read. Absolutely worth it. Several years ago I read a short book with a similar theme: The Victorian Internet by Tom Standage. Another inspiration to me was a 25 minute video about the HVDC lien linking North and South Island in New Zealand. https://hackaday.com/2015/08/19/retrotechtacular-one-does-not-simply-string-up-a-half-million-vdc-transmission-line/ https://hackaday.com/2015/08/19/retrotechtacular-one-does-no... I wonder if anybody will make a popular game out of estimating cable slack?
deleted 11y ago
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deleted 11y ago
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yelnatz 11y ago

Yea, I was pretty shocked when I learned about this when I was young. "So you're telling me there's literally cables under the sea that connects continents together?" http://i.imgur.com/f6V2jab.gifv http://i.imgur.com/f6V2jab.gifv

pmarreck 11y ago

In case you never read the famous Wired piece by Neal Stephenson on this topic: http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/ http://www.wired.com/1996/12/ffglass/

coleca 11y ago

There is a great book, called "Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet". It's about the plumbing of the Internet that covers pretty much all the physical aspects of what make the Internet including the undersea cables. The author even watched them land a new undersea cable. It's a quick read. http://amzn.com/0061994952 http://amzn.com/0061994952

theandrewbailey 11y ago

Map: http://submarinecablemap.com/ http://submarinecablemap.com/