the growing threat to the hidden network of cables that power the internet

It was the first days of 2022, after a massive volcanic eruption, when Tonga fell into darkness. The underwater eruption - 1,000 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima - sent tsunami waves across the nearby archipelago of Tonga, blanketing the island's white coral sands in ash.

The force of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai eruption cut off the internet connection to Tonga, causing a communications blackout at the time the crisis arose.

When the undersea cable that carries the country's internet was restored weeks later, the scale of the disruption was clear. The lack of connectivity had hampered recovery efforts ...