Google's Grace Hopper subsea cable lands in UK

It is expected to be ready for service next year

Google's Grace Hopper undersea data cable, connecting the US and Europe, has landed in Bude, Cornwall.

First announced in July 2020, this fibre-optic network cable starts its run in New York, and splits in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean to arrive in both Bude and Bilbao (Spain).

Google named the cable after American Navy rear admiral and computer scientist Grace Brewster Murray Hopper, best known for her pioneering work on early computer language compilers.

The cable supports 16 fibre pairs, double that in the old data cables. Google says it will use 'fibre switching' technology to better move traffic during outages for increased reliability.

'Grace Hopper will use this new switching architecture to provide optimum levels of network flexibility and resilience to adjust to unforeseen failures or traffic patterns', says Google. 'The multi-directional switching architecture is a significant breakthrough for uncertain times, and will more tightly integrate the upcoming Google Cloud region in Madrid into our global infrastructure.'

Google expects to complete the Grace Hopper project in 2022. Once operational, the cable will have the capacity to handle 17.5 million people streaming 4K videos at a time.

"As our first Google-funded cable to the UK, Grace Hopper is part of our ongoing investment in the country, supporting users who rely on our products and customers using our tools to grow their business," says Jayne Stowell, a strategic negotiator for Google Cloud's global infrastructure.

"Grace Hopper will connect the UK to help meet the rapidly growing demand for high-bandwidth connectivity and services," she added.

Google plans to connect Grace Hopper with another cable laid between Europe and Africa in the near future, to facilitate worldwide coverage of high-speed internet connectivity.

Around 98 per cent of global internet traffic is ferried around the world by undersea cables. Laying a subsea cable takes months of efforts and specialised vessels, but once laid, the cables can carry massive amounts of data across the globe.

In February, Google said its Dunant subsea cable was ready for service. Dunant connects Virginia Beach in the US with Saint-Hilaire-de-Riez on the French Atlantic coast, and can deliver data at a speed of 250 terabits per second (Tbps).

Google is also building the Equiano cable (named for abolitionist Olaudah Equiano) from South Africa to Portugal, which it expects to become operational later this year. Equiano will be 'the first subsea cable to incorporate optical switching at the fibre-pair level, rather than the traditional approach of wavelength-level switching.'

There are also plans for a new subsea cable connecting the East Coast of the US and Las Toninas, Argentina, with additional landings in Brazil and Uruguay. The cable will be designed and installed by SubCom and is expected to be ready for service by the end of 2023.