DHAKA: The World Wide Web will turn 25 years on March 12. But do you know what powers the internet? It is miles and miles of undersea cables linking up the different countries in the world.

These cables account for more than 99 percent of the world’s communications infrastructure because they carry heavy data loads compared to satellite capacity which is limited even though satellites are useful for broadcast and reaching remote areas.

Telecom market research firm TeleGeography maps the multitude of cables that links the world in an interactive map on its website.

The Straits Times speak to the company’s research director Alan Mauldin for some choice tidbits about submarine cables and Singapore’s connectivity to the rest of the world.

Although he does not know when the first submarine cable was laid to and from Singapore, he says Singapore is one of the world’s leading submarine cable hubs.

‘It plays a vital role in linking the intra-Asian cables that span Singapore-Japan, with those that link Singapore to India,’ he added.

BDST: 1645 HRS, MAR 11, 2014