The Internet today can be called one of the most important resources. For us, it is so accessible that it seems as if it is omnipresent. Our smartphones and tablets receive it without any wires. In fact, the technology works much more primitively, and a large-scale and very expensive network is put into the concept of the Internet. We will tell you everything about her.
How the Internet works
In simple terms, the Internet transfers information from point A to point B. These points are IP addresses - unique codes that identify the location of devices around the world. But any information goes through data servers located in processing centers. On the map below you can see the location of all such centers.
How information flows between data centers
The easiest, fastest, most reliable and affordable way to transfer information is cable. The Internet relies almost entirely on cables. The problem is that many of these cables run through bodies of water. This makes their installation very long, difficult and costly. This process took almost 200 years.
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To date, more than 300 submarine cables have been laid with a total length of almost 900 thousand kilometers. 97% of all intercontinental data is transmitted through these cables, and if you put them one by one, you can stretch it from the Earth to the Moon and wind it around the Earth three more times.
The longest submarine cable is nearly 40,000 kilometers long. It runs from Germany to the south of Australia. And the first transcontinental cable was laid from Ireland to Newfoundland back in 1858.
How submarine cables are laid and maintained
Various types of cables are laid under the water. The thinnest ones are as thick as a garden hose. All cables are based on fiber-optic wires, protected by a layer of stranded metal and a moisture-resistant layer. Laying such a cable requires several months of work, millions of dollars and a huge vessel on which the cable will be rolled.
According to MIT Tech Review, at least 50 submarine cable breaks occur each year. They are repaired by divers or with the help of special vessels, which pull up the two ends of the cable in order to carry out repair work on board.
Underground Internet
From the water, the cables go underground. They go underground to the processing centers. It is easier to pull and maintain cables underground, but still not very easy. Typically, they run along roads, gas pipelines, or water pipes. They come to data centers that use as much energy as 3000 homes.
Each of these centers is equipped with a huge number of racks with servers and fans that are deafeningly loud. The security level of such centers is higher than that of some airports. It is from them that we get the Internet through the same cables. This cable can be stretched to your house, or it can reach the operator's tower.
Ernest Vasilevsky