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The Men Who Fix the Internet
An anonymous reader writes "Remember all those undersea cables breaking? PopSci.com introduces John Rennie, who '... has braved the towering waves of the North Atlantic Ocean to keep your e-mail coming to you. As chief submersible engineer aboard the Wave Sentinel, part of the fleet operated by UK-based undersea installation and maintenance firm Global Marine Systems, Rennie — a congenial, 6'4", 57-year-old Scotsman — patrols the seas, dispatching a remotely operated submarine deep below the surface to repair undersea cables.' The article goes on to outline the physical infrastructure of the Internet, including some of its points of vulnerability."
Dragging an anchor isn't something you try to do. It's something that happens when the weather is more then the anchor can handle. Better to drag the anchor then to rip the anchor capstan off the boat. Funny how boats and cables both anchor near the shore ... you know, that place where people are.
You anchor down if it's stormy and you can't escape it. With strong currents or wind you might end up dragging the anchor. That's the only explanation I have.
There are enough satellites up there that we can get *some* communications without cables. Those satellite links suck at the best of times, though - if nothing else they have horrible latency, and can't approach the huge bandwidth of an undersea cable full of optic fibres. Just like in your own apartment, wireless is cool for convenience and for when you have a kitten (or fishing trawler) messing with your wiring, but cabling is always faster and better for fixed installations.
Rampant carbon sequestration destroyed the Dinosaurs' tropical paradise. I'm here to help repair the damage.
You anchor down if it's stormy and you can't escape it.
That's pretty much it. The last thing a skipper enjoys is to be pinned against a lee shore by a gale. If he can't get into the safety of deep water, dropping the hook is sometimes the only option. Sometimes, if his hook is too small or if its chain is too short for the wind/current load, it'll drag. It's not a fun situation to be in; I've been there.
Don't be so harsh. In English it's "preventative" maintenance. I would guess in US English it's "preventive" (I didn't know that, so thanks)