US-based Sprint Nextel has completed a technology trial of the alien wavelength OC768/STM256 40Gbps transatlantic IP link between New York and Lulea, Sweden.
Spanning more than 9,000km of fiber distance, the circuit includes a 7,630km segment of transatlantic submarine TAT-14 cable system between Sea Girt, New Jersey and BlAbjerg, Denmark, according to Sprint.
The trial was supported by the TAT-14 cable system consortium (a consortium of approximately 40 international telecommunications carriers) and by TAT-14 landing station operator in Denmark, TeliaSonera International Carrier. TeliaSonera International Carrier provided support and optical backhaul from the European cable landing station for TAT-14 to Stockholm and SUnet, the Swedish research and education network that provided the optical path to Lulea in the north of Sweden.
Kathy Walker, chief information and network officer for Sprint, said: It serves as a reminder of how far technology has advanced. TAT-14 and Sprint were the first to transmit data at 10-Gbps (OC192) speeds across the same path in 2001. Sprint and TAT-14 are making history again. By transmitting 40Gbps over an existing 10Gbps DWDM system, we’ve demonstrated that Sprint can increase capacity for its customers while minimizing additional capital and operational costs.
