The Y-49 Cable (also known as the Long Island Sound Cable) is an undersea and underground
high voltage
High voltage electricity refers to electrical potential large enough to cause injury or damage. In certain industries, ''high voltage'' refers to voltage above a certain threshold. Equipment and conductors that carry high voltage warrant sp ...
electric transmission
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...
cable between
Westchester County
Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population ...
and
Long Island via the
Long Island Sound and
Hempstead Harbor
Hempstead Harbor (also known as Hempstead Bay) is a bay hugging the northern coast of Long Island, New York. Located off of the Long Island Sound, it forms the northernmost portion of the political border between the Nassau County towns of Oyst ...
in
New York, United States. It is operated by the
New York Power Authority
The New York Power Authority (NYPA), officially the Power Authority of the State of New York, is a New York State public-benefit corporation. It is the largest state public power utility in the United States. NYPA provides some of the lowest-co ...
.
Description
The Y-49 Cable travels between the Sprain Brook Substation in
Yonkers
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York (state), New York, after New York City and Buffalo, New York, Buffalo. The popul ...
, Westchester County (operated by
Consolidated Edison) to the East Garden City Substation in
Uniondale,
Nassau County (operated by NYPA).
It travels under the Long Island Sound between Westchester County and Long Island; this undersea section is roughly in length (the entire line is roughly long).
The average depth of the undersea section is below the Long Island Sound's seabed.
Y-49 is one of five undersea transmission lines connecting between Long Island and the Continental United States as of 2021 (four of which are operated by NYPA).
History
The cable began operating in May 1991, and has a capacity of 675
megawatts
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wat ...
.
In 2014, the cable was damaged by an anchor from a boat.
The incident caused roughly 66,000 gallons of
cable insulation fluid to be released into
Hempstead Harbor
Hempstead Harbor (also known as Hempstead Bay) is a bay hugging the northern coast of Long Island, New York. Located off of the Long Island Sound, it forms the northernmost portion of the political border between the Nassau County towns of Oyst ...
.
As of 2021, there are proposals to upgrade the cable in order to increase its capacity.
See also
*
Cross Sound Cable The Cross-Sound Cable is a 25-mile (40 km) long bipolar high-voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine power cable between New Haven, Connecticut and Shoreham, on Long Island, in New York, United States.
Description
The Cross-Sound Cable can t ...
*
Y-50 Cable
References
Long Island Sound
Energy infrastructure completed in 1991
Energy infrastructure on Long Island, New York
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