Google to wrap up Christmas Island with new subsea cable

Connection will tie remote territory to Darwin in North Australia

A Google-funded subsea cable will connect the Australian territory of Christmas Island to Darwin on the mainland.

That cable, named Bosun after an iconic Christmas Island bird, will connect into comms company Vocus Group's Australia Singapore Cable that runs up through Indonesia and onto Singapore.

Although part of Australia now, Christmas Island was once a part of Singapore and sits 350 kilometers (220 miles) south of Java, Indonesia. It's home to roughly 2,500 inhabitants and lies 2,600 kilometers (1,600 miles) northwest of Perth in a kind of midway point between Australia and Southeast Asia, making it a good node for connecting onward.

Darwin, the capital city of Australia's Northern Territory, is about 2,700 km (1,700 miles) from Christmas Island.

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Bosun cable (pic: Google) – click to enlarge

The construction of Bosun builds on the Pacific Connect initiative, an effort to connect to places like Papua New Guinea, Fiji, and Samoa on the other side of Australia.

Additionally, a new interlink cable will connect Christmas Island, Perth, and Melbourne and into the Honomoana cable system, which extends out to the United States.

Google is a part of the Australia Connect initiative, which seeks to strengthen Australia's connections with Southeast Asia, the Pacific, and other regions. NEXTDC, SUBCO, Vocus, along with state and local governments in Darwin, Perth, and the Sunshine Coast, are also part of the effort.

The subsequent linking cable is expected to extend 42,500 km (26,400 miles), winding its way around Australia's north, east, and west coasts.

"Australia Connect complements Pacific Connect with four additional network links connecting Melbourne to Perth, Perth to Christmas Island, Christmas Island to Singapore, Christmas Island to Darwin," said Vocus. The company reckons the new subsea cables, in conjunction with existing cables between Darwin and Brisbane, will "establish Australia's largest and most diverse domestic inter-capital network."

The project places Perth, Darwin, and Brisbane as key nodes of the cable system.

Google has committed AU$1 billion ($650 million) over five years beginning in 2021 to digital projects in Australia, including those related to infrastructure, research, and partnerships, through the Digital Future Initiative. ®

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