The internet connects countries and continents primarily through submarine fiber optic cables that run under oceans. These high-capacity cables transmit data using light signals, enabling global communication. This visualization shows the growth of the undersea cable network, global internet peering capacity, and the distribution of IP addresses via BGP announcements over time. Use the controls at the top to play the animation or step through year by year. For more details and insights, please read this. Fibre-optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) is a 28,000-kilometre-long (17,398 mi; 15,119 nmi) fibre optic mostly- submarine communications cable that connects the United Kingdom, Japan, India, and many places in between.