Using what may be the most powerful parallel supercomputer of its kind,
NASA scientists can now evaluate the global impact of natural and
human-induced activities on our climate and predict probable climate
patterns in the future.

On Tuesday, July 31, computer scientists Dr. William Feiereisen and Dr.
James Taft of NASA Ames Research Center will be available for live
interviews to discuss Ames’ world-leading supercomputing technology that
may significantly improve our ability to simulate future climate dynamics.

“The new supercomputer will lead to faster and better development of
climate models for the Earth science community, government and industry,”
said Feiereisen, Chief of the NASA Advanced Supercomputing (NAS) facility.
“We have improved our ability to simulate climate by a factor of 10. Such
a
substantial increase in performance allows Earth scientists to complete
climate simulations in days, rather than months, leading to a better
understanding of how human activity has changed climate patterns,” he add
ed.

“The new techniques have demonstrated a development path that will allow
us
to move forward to100-times performance improvements over the next few
years. At these performance levels, we can begin to execute climate
simulations at truly high resolution, while taking advantage of the huge
data streams emerging from the latest Earth resources satellites,” added
Taft.

Book a window with Feiereisen and/or Taft on Tuesday, July 31, between 6:
30
a.m. and 10:30 a.m. EDT (3:30 and 7:30 a.m. PDT). To schedule an intervie
w
time slot, call Victoria Kushnir at 650/604-0176 or e-mail her at:
vkushnir@mail.arc.nasa.gov

Possible Questions for Ames Scientists:

  • Why use a computer to predict climate?
  • What is different about this supercomputer?
  • How can supercomputing help us predict the weather?
  • How does a supercomputer show the impact of human activities on our
    climate?
  • Who will benefit from this advancement?

    Live interviews will originate from Ames Research Center, Moffett Field,
    CA
    on NASA TV.

    NASA TV is broadcast on GE-2 (C-Band satellite), transponder 9C at85
    degrees west longitude, vertical polarization with a downlink frequency of
    3880 Mhz and audio of 6.8 Mhz. In case of trouble during the interview,
    call Ames master control at (650) 604-1296.