The internet isn't in a cloud. It's 600 cables on the ocean floor, and a single one is about as thick as a garden hose.

The internet isn't in a cloud. It's 600 cables on the ocean floor, and a single one is about as thick as a garden hose explains that most global connectivity depends on submarine fiber-optic cables rather than “the cloud,” satellites, or wireless links. It states that there are more than 600 cables on the seafloor, totaling over 1.5 million kilometers, and that they carry nearly all emails and stock trades worldwide, while satellites account for under 1% of the traffic. The article describes each deep-ocean cable as roughly the width of a garden hose, with internal fiber strands as thin as human hair, noting around $10 trillion in transactions cross them daily. It says about 200 cable faults occur each year, with boats and anchors responsible for two-thirds; it cites late-2024 damage when a cargo ship anchor dragged the seabed over 100 miles, cutting two Baltic cables. Repairs involve about 60 cable ships worldwide, fewer than 20 for restoration. Starlink is presented as supplementary capacity rather than a replacement, and the piece argues cable infrastructure remains the primary backbone.