CLOUD

The Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO)/Department of Defense (DoD) Major Shared Resource Center (MSRC) at Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Miss., was selected in March to receive new supercomputer systems that will triple the computing capability of the Center, and secure its place as one of the most capable high performance computing centers in the world. Stennis Space Center, Miss. (NNS) - The Naval Oceanographic Office (NAVOCEANO)/Department of Defense (DoD) Major Shared Resource Center (MSRC) at Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Miss., was selected in March to receive new supercomputer systems that will triple the computing capability of the Center, and secure its place as one of the most capable high performance computing centers in the world. The new systems, some of the largest ever built by IBM, will increase computing capability to approximately 30 trillion operations per second by the end of June. The 30 trillion operations that this Navy/DoD supercomputer can accomplish in just one second would take a normal human being 1.2 million years to accomplish. It's a lot of power, but almost normal when compared to the enormous amounts of data processed each day at the Center by more than 4,000 users. The high performance capabilities of the supercomputer provide NAVOCEANO with the ability to perform global scale modeling and simulation, to carry out its mission to maximize America's sea power and support the Naval Fleet. As the Center maintains day-to-day operations that support the warfighter, product turnaround to the fleet is time critical. The Center's capabilities are available to the users 24/7 to ensure that the tools the warfighter need are available now and in the future. This helps the NAVOCEANO/DoD MSRC maintain a 99.6 percent capability at any given time-the highest availability within the DoD MSRC program. Although the MSRC resides at NAVOCEANO, its focus is not exclusive to the operational Navy. It also covers Department of Defense (DoD)-wide research and development programs that utilize supercomputing capabilities for the Secretary of Defense, including "Challenge Projects," some of the most important projects in the DoD that range from wing and hull designs, to missile projectiles. NAVOCEANO and other Navy commands use 15 percent of the MSRC capacity, while DoD, industry and academia from around the world utilize the rest. "This upgrade will provide a tremendously improved capability for supporting the Navy and the Department of Defense on a nationwide level," said Steve Adamec, MSRC department director. The expansion will also be a benefit to Mississippi and Louisiana, putting a global spotlight on the expanding technology and scientific opportunities at Stennis Space Center and the Gulf Coast. NAVOCEANO has the responsibility of supplying oceanographic knowledge to all elements of the DoD by conducting ocean surveys, analyzing oceanographic data, and generating products to meet safe navigation and weapon/sensor performance needs using a variety of platforms that include ships, aircraft and satellite sensors, and buoys.