1980 World's Submarine Telephone Cable Systems

Herbert H. Schenck

Abstract:

This report provides detailed technical, cost and ownership information on all of the commercial underseas telephone cable systems in the world that contains at least one submerged electronic amplifier (repeater) and were in operation as of the end of 1979.

Preface to the 1980 Edition

In the 1975 edition, Data Profiles were given for systems actually in service at the close of 1974. Experimental systems, some military systems, and retired systems, were not listed. This edition, however, lists every system ever built.

A closing date was established, for the described systems in place and working, at the end of 1979. This has left a number of systems under construction without detailed Data Profiles; however, these systems are described under Future Systems.

The remarks about the submarine telephone cable industry in general have been expanded.

Preface to the 1975 Edition

Many listing of the seacable systems that have been planned, constructed, tested, used, and retired or abandoned, exist in the literature, but the task of verification, consolidation, and publication of a definitive treatment of the whole body of data has not heretofore been attempted.

This study has been undertaken for the scholar and engineer in the technical telecommunications community, as a comprehensive work utilizing private data banks reënforced with review and comment from builders and owners.

A review is given of the technological advances that have occurred from the first installation of a deep-water electronically- reënforced undersea telephone cable systems in 1950. Mention is made of earlier pioneering installations; however, the listing of submarine cable systems has been limited to those that contain at least one submerged electronic amplifier (repeater), and to those still in service at the end of 1974.

The listing of systems is given in chronological order together with the nationalities of the connected territories and additional geographic identification.

It has been an objective to avoid abbreviations, but space limitations require a few. These are listed at the end of the Data Profiles, followed by a listing of manufacturers.

Next is an index in which nations, territories, and locations are listed alphabetically. Finally, there is a glossary of terms.

The 1975 listing was restricted to systems in service in 1974. Since many interesting systems have been under construction since then with firm plans for others in the near future, there is a supplemental listing of systems under construction, under international tender, or reasonably expected to be brought into being within the next decade. Naturally, portions of this listing may be speculative, but the history of the industry confirms that an extremely high percentage of systems, once "planned" or announced as "intended," actually do come into existence.

Keywords: submarine cable systems; telephone cable systems; seacables; underseas cables

Disclaimer: Certain commercial equipment, components, and software may be identified in this report to specify adequately the technical aspects of the reported results. In no case does such identification imply recommendation or endorsement by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, nor does it imply that the equipment or software identified is necessarily the best available for the particular application or uses.

For questions or information on this or any other NTIA scientific publication, contact the ITS Publications Office at ITSinfo@ntia.gov or 303-497-3572.

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