FASTER cable brings 60Tb/s connectivity between US, Japan

The FASTER undersea cable between Japan and North America has officially been lit up today, boasting of a 60Tb/s (terabits per second) throughput thanks to multi-spectral lighting technology.

Built by NEC alongside Google, KDDI, Singtel, Global Transit, China Telecom Global, and China Mobile International, the Faster Cable System - to give the 9,000km trans-Pacific cable its full name - certainly lives up to its name. 'From the very beginning of the project, we repeatedly said to each other, ‘faster, Faster and FASTER,' and at one point it became the project name, and today it becomes a reality,' crowed FASTER Management Committee chair Hiromitsu Todokoro as the cable was sent live. 'This is the outcome of six members' collaborative contribution and expertise together with NEC's support.'

Wholly built by the NEC Corporation, the first time it has approached a trans-Pacific cabling project solo, and using 100 different frequencies of light, the cable offers an overall throughput of 60Tb/s - more than any currently active undersea cable. Its 9,000km run is supported by repeaters located every 60km. It lands in the US in Oregon, and in Japan at the Chiba and Mie prefectures.

The cable, of which Google wholly owns a sub-section connecting Japan and Taiwan at 20Tb/s and has a part share in the main trans-Pacific section, is live and carrying data from today.