We briefly explain which are the cables that bring the internet to our homes and those that bring us light.

We are very used to seeing high-voltage towers or junction boxes on the facades that offer us internet service, but of course, that on land is very simple, but how are the continents and islands connected so that electricity arrives? and the internet connection? It is based on special submarine cables, which connect the continents so that we all have an internet connection and the islands are connected by submarine cables, so that devices can be connected.

The cables that provide us with internet access connect continents and islands via special cables laid on the surface or buried in the ocean floor. They are primarily covered in shallow waters to prevent damage, although 65% of failures, despite being buried, are due to fishing and other human-caused factors; the remaining 35% are due to other reasons. Currently, there are more than 250 cables distributed across the globe that enable the interconnection of the internet.

Today's cables are much more complex and compact, but the first one was installed 150 years ago to connect the USA and the UK. It was about five times thicker than current cables and coated with resin. Interestingly, sharks sometimes bite these cables, but this accounts for less than 1% of cable failures. Regarding their capacity, they can handle the simultaneous playback of ten million YouTube videos. Today, these cables range in size from 50 mm² ^to 300 mm² ⁽ depending on the traffic they need to carry).

Electrical cables in Spain , and in Europe (at least), are also quite complex and require specialized infrastructure. In Spain, they must have specific characteristics and withstand particular voltages with minimal voltage loss. Although alternating current reaches our homes, direct current is transmitted to the Balearic and Canary Islands. This is because the cables can generate eddy currents with the seabed due to the effect of magnetic flux.

Currently the legislation in Spain establishes that from 50Km of submarine cable a conversion from alternating to continuous must be carried out at the starting point and from continuous to alternating at the destination. Mallorca is unique with the peninsula through Valencia in a direct buried cable. To bury them, a trench is dug with a special one-meter machine that, as the cable falls, covers the cable again to avoid damage by fishing and marine animals.

Said cable is of special construction and can be of two types, with the core of the conductor cable entirely made up of aluminum braided cables, such as high voltage cables. These cables are not as good conductors as copper, but they are cheaper. There are also cables whose central cable or cables are telecommunications, which can be for telematic operation and control or for transporting the Internet and other telecommunication systems.