Sirius North

Overview

Sirius North is a short domestic submarine cable system operating entirely within the United Kingdom. Spanning 147 km, it connects two landing points on opposite shores of the North Channel, linking the coast of Northern Ireland with the west coast of Scotland. The cable serves an intra-UK corridor across this narrow stretch of water between the Irish Sea and the North Channel.

Route and Landings

Within the United Kingdom, Sirius North lands at two points: Carrickfergus, located on the northeastern coast of Northern Ireland, and Saltcoats, situated on the Firth of Clyde coast of Ayrshire in Scotland. These two landings define the full extent of the cable's route across the North Channel.

Ownership and Operators

Sirius North is owned by Virgin Media Business, the enterprise and wholesale division of Virgin Media, which provides connectivity services to businesses and public sector organisations across the United Kingdom.

Status and Timeline

Sirius North entered service in 1999 and has now been operational for approximately 27 years. The cable continues to operate as an active domestic submarine link between Northern Ireland and mainland Scotland.

Regional Context

The United Kingdom is one of the most heavily connected countries in the world for submarine cable infrastructure, with 42 cables landing across 105 landing points. Sirius North sits at the shorter end of the spectrum in this environment — at 147 km, it is longer than approximately 29% of the other cables touching the same country, reflecting its role as a short intra-national crossing rather than a long-haul international system.

The UK corridor is home to a wide range of cable systems of substantially greater length, including intercontinental cables such as 2Africa, Europe India Gateway (EIG), Atlantic Crossing-1 (AC-1), Apollo, EXA North and South, and Glo-1. Sirius North is distinct among these peers in its purpose-built domestic focus, connecting two points within the UK across a relatively confined but geographically significant stretch of water.

Strategic Role

By connecting Carrickfergus in Northern Ireland to Saltcoats in Scotland, Sirius North provides a direct subsea path between two parts of the United Kingdom separated by the North Channel. This domestic link supports connectivity between Northern Ireland and mainland Great Britain, complementing the broader network of international cables that land elsewhere in the UK.