Internet2 Gets 10X Boost

A parallel network to the commercial Internet has made another giant leap, increasing its already incredibly fast speed tenfold to 100 gigabits per second. That means Internet2—used by researchers, universities and some corporations—will be able to download a movie in a few seconds; the current 10 gig connections take about half a minute for the same task, CNet reports.

The breakthrough involves sending 10 different wavelengths of data over one strand of fiber. The new network speed won’t be available for consumers for several years, but physicists at work on the largest particle accelerator in the world will get a crack at the new Internet capability next May. (More Internet2 stories.)