Undersea Surgeons

For most people, the internet may be indispensable, but they take it for granted. Though it is sometimes described as the world’s biggest machine, few spare a thought for its physical core: the vast networks of cables spun across sea floors and continents, the cities of energy-hungry servers speeding along data. Until there is a problem. Any number of things can knock an undersea cable out of service. Landslides can do it. So can a ship dragging its anchor. There may be unintended damage from military skirmishes. And then there is sabotage, a growing concern. But most components of the physical internet are privately owned, and the companies behind them have very little incentive to explain any failures. That can make it daunting for people who rely on the cables to try to get a handle on why an outage is happening. Especially in real time.