The Fastest Supercomputers in the World
Last week, the Top 500 Supercomputer rankings were released to coincide with the SC15 annual conference, being held in Texas this year. Those familiar with the Top 500 will recognise many of the names, but some new contenders have also made the list this time. As specialists in cloud computing, we are quite geeky about these things. Sadly, we can’t quite match up to these systems. Here are the top ten.
1. Tianhe-2
Coming in at first place for the sixth time running, as the world’s most powerful supercomputer is Tianhe-2. The reigning champion of supercomputers is located at the National University of Defense Technology in Guangzhou, China. It is used by researchers in southern China as an open research platform.
2. Titan
Titan is located at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, USA. It is used by the Department of Energy’s researchers, on projects surrounding alternative and efficient energy, climate change, efficient energies and identifying new materials.
3. Sequoia
Sequoia can be found at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, USA. Sequoia was built by IBM as part of the Advanced Simulation and Computing Programme (ASC) for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA).
4. K Computer
Fujitsu’s K Computer is the longest-running, repeat contender in the top ten list of supercomputers. It is located at the Riken Advanced Institute for Computational Science in Kobe, Japan. K Computer is used for researching disaster prevention, meteorology and climate change and is known for being one of the least energy efficient supercomputers on the list.
5. Mira
Located in Illinois, USA, Mira is a return entry to the top ten. Mira is used by the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory for tasks such as exploring climate change, looking for the evolution of the universe and designing more efficient electric car batteries.
6. Trinity
Located at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, USA, Trinity is a newcomer debuting in the top ten. Trinity supports the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) to advance the Stockpile Stewardship Programme, which is concerned with ensuring that the nuclear stockpile is reliable, safe and secure.
7. Piz Daint
Named after a prominent peak in the Swiss Alps, Piz Daint is located at the Swiss National Supercomputing Centre (SNSC). It stands out as being the most energy-efficient system in the top ten. Piz Daint is one of several supercomputers at the SNSC that supports researchers from across Switzerland.
8. Hazel Hen
Hazel Hen is located at the University of Stuttgart in Germany. Having recently been upgraded to deliver twice the performance of the previous system, known as Hornet, this is a debut for Hazel Hen in the top ten. The supercomputer supports scientific and industrial users both within Germany and on a wider European scale.
9. Shaheen II
Shaheen II is an academic supercomputer that is located at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia. This is the second time running that Shaheen II has made the top ten. Last time, it was famed for being the first supercomputer based in the Middle East to enter the top ten list of the most powerful computers in the world.
10. Stampede
Built by Dell, Stampede is installed at the Texas Advanced Computing Centre at the University of Texas in Austin. Although it has slipped to number ten on the latest list, Stampede is still an extremely powerful machine. Stampede empowers Scientists and Engineers across America to interactively share advanced computational resources, expertise and data in a way that furthers scientific research across all disciplines.