NZ Science and Research Leaps Ahead

23 July 2014

NZ Science and Research Leaps Ahead

New Zealand scientists and researchers can now become global players on a brand new scale, thanks to a ground-breaking trans-Tasman partnership that will provide them access to very high-speed global connectivity.

The partnership negotiated in January by REANNZ, its Australian equivalent AARNet and the Southern Cross Cable Network, means New Zealand scientists and researchers will, for the first time, have capacity for ‘big data’ transport between New Zealand and the rest of the world.

“This will allow New Zealand science and research to be at the leading edge of global research and have the same capabilities as their trans-Tasman peers” says REANNZ CEO Steve Cotter. He also points out, “this is a unique opportunity to strengthen ties between scientists and researchers in Australia and New Zealand.”

“Our members now have the basic tools they have been lacking to submit proposals to conduct global research projects. The scope of projects that will benefit is exciting, including climate research, radio astronomy, participation in the international Square Kilometre Array project, medicine, genomics, National Science Challenges, and more.”

Mr. Cotter adds that in association with AARNet, the Southern Cross sponsorship of SXtransPORT has been providing Australian science and research with international bandwidth for non-commercial use since 2003.

“SXtransPORT connects through AARNET to Advanced Research Networks in the US, Asia and Europe at 40 Gbps. New Zealand researchers can now access unique scientific instruments and can collaborate with international counterparts at very high speeds.”

“Until now REANNZ provided international access to its members through a small 1 Gbps connection, so this deal is a massive improvement for New Zealand’s science and research users,” he stresses.

AARNet CEO Chris Hancock adds that “strengthening the relationship between the science and research communities of New Zealand and Australia will be a tremendous benefit for both communities and both countries”.

Southern Cross CEO Anthony Briscoe notes that Southern Cross is delighted to now be able to connect New Zealand’s scientific and research community to its exciting SXtransPORT sponsorship and was looking forward to assured success in New Zealand, just as it has been in Australia.

“SCCN and REANNZ will continue to work together to showcase New Zealand's networking capabilities. SCCN's support of researchers and academics is important in ensuring that New Zealand maintains a strong position internationally among network specialists and more widely, technologists” says Mr. Briscoe. As a example of this collaboration, SCCN and REANNZ are working together to bring a dedicated network connection to the GLIF 2014 Conference in Queenstown later this yearhttp://www.glif.is/meetings/2014/. The annual GLIF meeting is a gathering of the world's leading network engineers who consistently demonstrate unique, one-of-a-kind and first-ever technologies and capabilities.

About REANNZ
REANNZ (Research and Education Advanced Network New Zealand Ltd) is the not-for-profit Crown-owned company that owns and operates a high-speed, high-performance network and associated services for New Zealand’s education, research and innovation communities. Members include Universities, Crown Research Institutes, Wānanga, Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics. The REANNZ network supports the specialised needs of high-end science and research and links cross-institutional collaborative activities like the National Science Challenges and the Centres of Research Excellence.

About AARNet
AARNet Pty Ltd (APL) is the not for profit company that operates Australia’s Academic and Research Network (AARNet). The shareholders are 38 Australian universities and the CSIRO.

AARNet provides high capacity Internet and other communications services for the nation’s research and education community, including universities, health and other research organisations, schools, vocational training providers and cultural institutions. AARNet serves over one million end users who access the network for teaching, learning and research.

About Southern Cross
Southern Cross Cable Network provides fast, direct, and secure international bandwidth from Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii to the heart of the Internet in the USA. The Southern Cross Cable Network comprises two submarine communications cables which were first commissioned in November 2000 and January 2001 at a cost of USD1.3 billion. They provide broadband users in Australia, New Zealand, the Hawaiian Islands and Fiji with international connections to the US West coast where global Internet hubs are located.

The Southern Cross Network has been engineered to operate until at least 2025. In 2001 total installed capacity was 80 Gb/s, and in January 2003 the total network was expanded to 480Gb/s. Upgrades in 2009 and 2010 increased capacity to 1.2Tb/s. The 40G Coherent technology upgrade in 2012 increased total lit capacity to 1.6Tb/s,with a subsequent 100G Coherent upgrade increasing lit capacity to 2.6Tb/s in 2013. This latest upgrade completed in June 2014 increased lit capacity to 3.6Tb/s.

The Southern Cross Cable Network is owned by Telecom NZ (50%), SingTel-Optus (40%) and Verizon (10%). Southern Cross Cable Network has offices in Bermuda, Sydney, Auckland and Wellington. For more information visit Southern Cross at: www.southerncrosscables.com

ENDS

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