The hidden network that makes the internet possible

In 2012, a team of researchers set a world record, transmitting 1 petabit of data— that’s 10,000 hours of high-def video— over a fifty-kilometre cable, in a second. This wasn’t just any cable. It was a souped-up version of fiber optics, the hidden network that links our planet and makes the internet possible. What is fiber optics, how does it work, and how is it evolving? Sajan Saini explores the vital technology.