NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley invites members of the media to engage with NASA researchers and computer experts to learn more about the future of high-performance computing at the agency during the grand opening of its new modular supercomputing facility.
NASA’s innovative modular approach to supercomputing expands the power of the NASA Advanced Supercomputing Facility at Ames, used by more than 1,500 scientists and engineers across the country. The modular facility drastically reduces the amount of electricity and water typically needed to cool traditional supercomputing facilities. These savings are made possible by cooling technology that uses outside air and evaporative methods ideally suited to the temperate climate in the San Francisco Bay Area. In addition, a significant benefit of using the modular approach is the ability to quickly construct additional modules and add computing power to meet new challenges.
The new supercomputer, named Aitken, is housed in the first module of the facility, which has the potential to expand to 16 modules for computing and data storage. Aitken will give researchers the ability to run thousands of complex simulations more quickly as they continue to support agency missions and the Artemis program.
The event will take place at Ames, near Mountain View, California, on Thursday, Aug. 22, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. In addition to a ribbon cutting ceremony, members of the media will have the opportunity to tour the module, interview researchers, and view scientific visualizations of NASA research for the Artemis program and Earth science projects.
Media who are interested in attending should RSVP by contacting Tiffany Blake at tiffany.n.blake@nasa.gov or 650-604-4789 by 5 p.m. on Aug. 21.
The NASA Advanced Supercomputing Facility at Ames has enabled remarkable breakthroughs in the space agency’s science and engineering missions, from supporting designs of safer air- and spacecraft to processing for discoveries of new planets. For more than 30 years, NASA Advanced Supercomputing experts have influenced the state of the art in high-end computing and related technologies.
For more information about NASA’s Advanced Supercomputing Facility, visit:
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