A cable ran out from the jungle to an underwater DHARMA Initiative station known as the Looking Glass.
The cable came out of the ground in the jungle within a few hundred feet of a ravine with a rope bridge across it. It then ran through the jungle along the ground to the beach on the south side of the Island. From the beach, it traveled through the ocean to the Looking Glass station.
Discovery
The cable was first discovered coming out of the sea from an unseen source by Sayid. It was slightly damaged, revealing wires within it. Danielle Rousseau had set traps alongside the cable; one captured Sayid, another almost killed Hurley, and another would have killed Charlie without Desmond's intervention.
Encounters
- It was first discovered by Sayid on the beach. ("Solitary")
- Hurley followed the cable inland to locate Danielle Rousseau; the cable was followed to its end where it seems to continue underground. ("Numbers")
- Desmond, Charlie, Hurley, and Jin journeyed to the cable, following a vision of Desmond's. There, they heard what sounded like the crash of a helicopter. They headed inland in search of its bailed pilot. ("Catch-22")
- Charlie and Desmond ventured to the cable as a starting point to find The Looking Glass station. ("Greatest Hits")
Purpose
According to Mikhail Bakunin, there were several cables that ran from the Flame to all the other DHARMA stations, to the Barracks, and to a beacon in the ocean which aided in the sonar navigation of the submarine arriving to the island from the outside world. He described the main purpose of the cable as being "for communication". ("Enter 77")
Using some documents that he retrieved from the Flame, Sayid later figured out that the cable serves as connection between the island and the underwater DHARMA station, the Looking Glass. ("Greatest Hits")
The documents displayed the cable in a different configuration than was seen in 2004. The side view of the cable showed an anchor structure near the shore where the cable went inland. The top view of the cable talked about the cable being anchored to land.
Sonar beacon
According to Mikhail, the cable led to the sonar beacon. This beacon allowed the submarine to locate the Island from the outside. ("Enter 77")
The cable was later shown to run to the Looking Glass, the schematics of which indicated a sonar and observation room. ("Greatest Hits") The show's creators have confirmed that the Looking Glass is the underwater station suspected by fans. (Official Lost Podcast/May 21, 2007)
It was said that the sonar beacon had been down since the electromagnetic pulse. The combination of the failure of the sonar system and the communications uplink at the Flame triggered the Flame's computer to provide a menu option asking if there had been an intrusion by the hostiles at the station. ("Enter 77")
Notable visitors
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| Picture | Name | First visit | Last visit | Reason for Visit | ||||||
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Sayid | "Solitary" | "Solitary" | Discovered the cable whilst on his lonesome trek around the island on Day 9. | ||||||
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Danielle | "Solitary" | "Solitary" | Set traps across the length of the cable that ran into the jungle to combat the Others. | ||||||
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Hurley | "Numbers" | "Catch-22" | Followed the cable inland a month after Sayid discovered it, and then returned once again a few months later to investigate one of Desmond's flashes. | ||||||
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Desmond | "Catch-22" | "Through the Looking Glass, Part 1" | Went to investigate his flashes, and he camped next to the cable for the night. A week later, Desmond and Charlie returned to follow the cable into the ocean to investigate the Looking Glass. | ||||||
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Charlie | "Catch-22" | "Through the Looking Glass, Part 1" | Went to investigate Desmond's flashes, and he camped next to the cable for the night. A week later, Charlie and Desmond returned to follow the cable into the ocean to investigate the Looking Glass. | ||||||
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Jin | "Catch-22" | "Catch-22" | Went to investigate Desmond's flashes, and he camped next to the cable for the night | ||||||
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Mikhail | "Through the Looking Glass, Part 1" | "Through the Looking Glass, Part 1" | Shot at Desmond from the beach, next to the cable. | ||||||
Comic Con 2006
The existence of an underwater DHARMA station was hinted at during the 2006 Comic Con in San Diego, in response to a fan question about the cable, approximately a year before the station appeared in an actual episode. This Lost panel discussion was also rebroadcast as The Official Lost Podcast on July 31, 2006.
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Fan 7: I was just curious if next season, we were going to finally see the underwater hatch? |
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