Xtera Helps Global Crossing Upgrades AC-1

International service provider glbc has been upgrading its AC-1 transatlantic cable in stages over the past year, and today it was announced that Xtera gear has been powering the effort.  Xtera announced a contract to upgrade Network Segment C between Brookhaven, NY and White Sands, UK.  Last year it also supported the upgrade of Network Segments A and B2, as well as a capacity upgrade on Global Crossing’s PAC cable between Panama and California.  

Global Crossing is using Xtera’s 20Gbps DPSK-enabled submarine line terminal equipment, which enables them to extend total capacity well beyond the system’s original design capacity, adding over 1Tbps thus far.  AC-1’s construction preceded the other major cables in the Atlantic by a couple years and isn’t as large, but with this upgrade is clearly still in the game.

With no new cables yet in the cards for the Atlantic, carriers are depending on upgrades to the electronics such as this to keep pace with traffic growth.  It parallels Infinera’s recently announced transatlantic deployment which appears (to me) to be on Level 3’s Yellow system, as well as the Alcatel-Lucent/Apollo 40G demonstration announced today.

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Categories: Telecom Equipment · Undersea cables