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College Ball SCC Nevent
30 August, 2016

Celebrating AARNet’s trans-Pacific network partnerships

The trans-Pacific international network connectivity for Australia’s research and education community is operated by AARNet in partnership with Southern Cross Cable Networks, and this longterm partnership was celebrated recently at the opening game of the American College Football Championships held in Sydney on Saturday 27 August 2016.

Importantly, the game also involved longstanding AARNet partners in the USA: the University of Hawaii and the University of California.

The University of California, Berkley Cal Bears battled it out against the University of Hawaii, Rainbow Warriors, and won, in front of a 60,000+ crowd at ANZ Stadium, Sydney Olympic Park.

AARNet’s mission is to provide friction-free networking for research and education and our trans-Pacific connectivity is continuously upgraded to meet the needs of data-intensive research ahead of demand. Read about the recent completion of the 100 Gbps upgrade to the trans-Pacific network from Australia to the West Coast of the USA.

21st Century Trailblazers

You can find out more about the AARNet Southern Cross Cable Networks partnership that has enabled Australia’s research community to contribute to important global research projects since 2003 in the 21st Century Trailblazers book produced for the event.

Read about Australia’s amazing contributions in the fields of astronomy, health and medicine, food security, particle physics, climate science, networking technologies and more.

The partnership has also secured broadband connectivity for several isolated Pacific Island countries, and notably for the University of the South Pacific campuses in Fiji, Tonga and the Marshall Islands.

The South Pacific is a key region for observing climate changes, as well as oceanography, biodiversity and coral reef health. Connecting the Pacific Islands provides an opportunity to engage Pacific Islanders in a wide range of scientific and research initiatives in these fields of critical concern to their communities.

Image: AARNet at the American College Football Championships Opening Game Sydney on 27 August 2016. Enjoying the game, from left to right, AARNet CEO Chris Hancock, University of California VP Student Services Harry Le Grande, Curtis Lee, University of Hawaii President and CEO David Lassner, US Ambassador John Berry, AARNet Chair Gerard Sutton.