TAT-14 was the 14th consortium
transatlantic telecommunications cable system. In operation from 2001 to 2020, it used
wavelength division multiplexing
In fiber-optic communications, wavelength-division multiplexing (WDM) is a technology which multiplexes a number of optical carrier signals onto a single optical fiber by using different wavelengths (i.e., colors) of laser light. This techniq ...
. The cable system was built from multiple pairs of fibres—one fibre in each pair was used for data carried in one direction and the other in the opposite direction. Although optical fibre can be used in both directions simultaneously, for reliability it is better not to require splitting equipment at the end of the individual fibre to separate transmit and receive signals—hence a fibre pair is used. TAT-14 used four pairs of fibres—two pairs as active and two as backup. Each fibre in each pair carried 16 wavelengths in one direction, and each wavelength carried up to an
STM-256
Synchronous optical networking (SONET) and synchronous digital hierarchy (SDH) are standardized protocols that transfer multiple digital bit streams synchronously over optical fiber using lasers or highly coherent light from light-emitting diodes ...
(38,486,016 kbit/s as payload). The fibres were bundled into submarine cables connecting the United States and the European Union (United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark) in a
ring topology
A ring network is a network topology in which each node connects to exactly two other nodes, forming a single continuous pathway for signals through each node – a ring. Data travels from node to node, with each node along the way handling ever ...
.
By the time this cable went into operation, the expected ''
long boom'' (term coined by
''Wired'' magazine) was already ending in the ''
dot-com death''. The overinvestment in transcontinental
optical fiber
An optical fiber, or optical fibre in Commonwealth English, is a flexible, transparent fiber made by drawing glass (silica) or plastic to a diameter slightly thicker than that of a human hair. Optical fibers are used most often as a means to ...
capacity led to a financial crisis in private cable operators like
Global Crossing
Global Crossing was a telecommunications company that provided computer networking services and operated a tier 1 carrier. It maintained a large backbone network and offered peering, virtual private networks, leased lines, audio and video confer ...
.
In the
cables leak released by
WikiLeaks
WikiLeaks () is an international Nonprofit organization, non-profit organisation that published news leaks and classified media provided by anonymous Source (journalism), sources. Julian Assange, an Australian Internet activism, Internet acti ...
, it is revealed that the landing point in
Katwijk, the Netherlands is included in a
US Government
The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a feder ...
list of
critical infrastructure
Critical infrastructure (or critical national infrastructure (CNI) in the UK) is a term used by governments to describe assets that are essential for the functioning of a society and economy – the infrastructure. Most commonly associated wit ...
susceptible to
terrorist attack
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
.
Use of the cable was ceased on December 15, 2020, shortly after the
Havfrue cable, whose main trunk also lands at Blaabjerg, was lit in November 2020. In 2021 the permanent dismantling of the system was begun.
Cable failure
In November 2003, TAT-14 suffered two breaks within weeks of each other, first on the southern link between the US and UK, then on the link between France and the Netherlands which had been providing redundant service to the UK via the northern link through Denmark, resulting in disruption to Internet services in the United Kingdom.
On May 19, 2014, preliminary reports from hosting provider
Digital Ocean
Digital Ocean, Inc., was a maker of wireless products from 1992 to 1998.
The company was founded in May 1992 by Jeffery Alholm and headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. Several contracts with Apple Inc., AT&T, Aironet Wireless Communications (later a ...
suggested that TAT-14 was the cause for the disrupted services between the EU and the US.
References
External links
TAT-14 Cable System(archived)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tat-14
Transatlantic communications cables
Infrastructure completed in 2001
British Telecom buildings and structures
AT&T buildings
Deutsche Telekom
Vodafone buildings and structures
Verizon Communications
Sprint Corporation
KPN
Orange S.A.
Telenor
Level 3 Communications
KDDI
SoftBank Group
Telus
Telefónica
Rostelecom
Science and technology in Cornwall
Tata Communications
2001 establishments in Europe
2001 establishments in New Jersey
2020 disestablishments in Europe
2020 disestablishments in New Jersey