Aqua Comms Announces Transatlantic Seabed Spectrum Agreement with Energy Sciences Network

Aqua Comms, a leading global undersea connectivity service provider, recently announced an agreement with Energy Science Network (ESnet) to lease 25% of undersea fiber optic pairs between New York, Dublin, and London for a long period of time. This protocol marks the first acquisition of transatlantic spectrum by ESnet, a high-performance network funded by the Science Office of the US Department of Energy (DOE) and managed by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, aimed at supporting scientific research.
ESnet, as the “data circulation system” of the research community of the US Department of Energy, provides services to tens of thousands of scientific researchers in the entire national laboratory system, supercomputing facilities, and major scientific instruments, and is peer-to-peer connected to more than 270 research and commercial networks worldwide. This quarter fiber pair will provide a dedicated 5Tbps data pipeline, which will be a fundamental element of ESnet’s long-term transatlantic strategy to adapt to the rapid growth of data flow from US Department of Energy scientific collaborations and facilities, including support for the high brightness upgrade of the Large Hadron Collider at the European Nuclear Research Center.
Inder Monga, Executive Director of ESnet, said, “Scientific research has entered an era of billions, and researchers need to be able to quickly, seamlessly, and reliably transfer large amounts of data from instruments to high-performance computing facilities, and then to human collaborators around the world. ESnet is committed to continuing to build a strong, redundant network to serve the Department of Energy’s research ecosystem.”

Jim Fagan, CEO of Aqua Comms, said, “Subsea Spectrum provides scalability and control over dark fiber at an extremely low cost, allowing customers to plan their long-term network needs.” By collaborating with Aqua Comms, ESnet can have confidence in our expertise and leading global seabed engineering services, as we continue to demonstrate that we are at the forefront of technology and can support customers’ needs through high bandwidth and efficient network services.

The Aqua communication network utilizes Ciena’s GeoMesh Extreme underwater network solution, which is supported by advanced software features such as WaveLogic 5 Extreme Coherent Optics and Management, Control, and Planning (MCP) to support customers’ growing connectivity and bandwidth needs. In addition, Ciena Services also provides specialized automated installation, spectrum activation, and testing for underwater networks to save time and improve optimization, as well as SLTE technical support to ensure optimal network reliability.
Thomas Sorensen, Vice President of Ciena’s Global Submarine Solutions, said, “When 400G wavelengths are insufficient to meet the growing demand, operators are turning to underwater spectrum to meet their scalable, transcontinental needs. With Ciena’s best in class GeoMesh Extreme solution, Aqua Comms’ network has high bandwidth, intelligence, and cost-effectiveness to meet the unique connectivity needs of big science.”