Intelligent Data Centres Issue 38 | Page 59

NO-UK submarine cable system achieves record-breaking 800Gb / s line rate with Ciena

Submarine cable system connecting Norway and the UK achieves milestone that will facilitate a new era of connectivity between the countries .

NO-UK , the state-of-the-art submarine cable system between Norway and the United Kingdom ( UK ), has achieved a record-breaking 800Gb / s line rate using Ciena ’ s GeoMesh Extreme , powered by WaveLogic 5 Extreme coherent optical technology . This will allow NO-UK to deliver its customers greater capacity , faster speeds and a greener offering through lower energy consumption .

NO-UK ’ s open submarine cable system , featuring eight fibre pairs , runs for 700km between Stavanger ( Norway ) and Newcastle ( UK ) and is the shortest low-latency direct submarine route between the two nations . The system was developed by Altibox Carrier , which owns and operates fibre-optic cables and supplied by Xtera , a turnkey provider of subsea systems . The project is managed by specialist consultants SubSea Networks Ltd .
Altibox selected Ciena ’ s GeoMesh Extreme , leveraging Ciena ’ s WaveLogic 5 Extreme technology and 6500 Packet- Optical Platforms , supporting up to 35Tb / s per fibre pair-the highest capacity achieved to date across a repeatered submarine network . The design and cable validation exercise was conducted according to the new International Telecoms Union ( ITU ) submarine cable standard for open cables , known as ITU-T G . 977.1 .
Svein Arild Ims , Director at Altibox Carrier , said : “ NO-UK has been developed to support the evolving requirements of businesses in Norway . We wanted it to deliver the highest bandwidth and capacity available across a submarine network in a sustainable way and Ciena ’ s GeoMesh Extreme , combined with Xtera ’ s unique widebandwidth and low-noise repeater design , has achieved exactly that . The network has exceeded our expectations in every way and sets the standard for future connectivity between Norway and the UK .”
Ian Clarke , Vice President of Global Submarine Solutions at Ciena , said :
“ Ciena continues to push the limits of submarine cable networks , achieving 800Gb / s line rate-another industry first . With more capacity and lower cost-per-bit , lower power consumption and lower on-going operational costs , the solution provides a modern and environmentally friendly network for Altibox ’ s NO-UK customers .” �
THE NETWORK HAS EXCEEDED OUR EXPECTATIONS IN EVERY WAY AND SETS THE STANDARD FOR FUTURE CONNECTIVITY BETWEEN NORWAY AND THE UK .
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