CHEMISTRY
CU to use SiCortex cluster for space studies
Company Continues to Gain Traction in Higher Education Market: SiCortex announced today that the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado has purchased and installed a SiCortex SC648 half-teraflop system as an integral part of its research into solar influences, planetary physics, atmospheric science and space physics. 
The systems will be utilized by the Data Systems group within LASP, which handles the algorithm development, data management and data system expertise to ensure that LASP’s research scientists deliver the highest quality scientific data products and results. Their data acquisition operations for real-time satellite and space craft implementation require their systems to be highly reliable. LASP, among the world’s leading space science institutes, has active programs in planetary, solar and space physics. It has sent instruments to every planet in the solar system and has developed suites of instruments to observe the Earth’s atmosphere and the Sun. The SiCortex SC648 will be used primarily to support theoretical modeling of solar and planetary dynamical processes. “The work we do is computationally-intensive, so high performance computing resources are always at a premium,” said Mark Rast, an LASP solar physicist and one of the primary users of the SiCortex system. “The SC648 will enable us to have a dedicated, high performance Linux system within our group, with the added benefit of significant power savings.” The SC648, part of the SiCortex family of Linux multicore systems, provides well over a half-teraflop of peak performance and plugs into a standard 110v outlet. The system’s small footprint and exceptional power efficiency will enable LASP researchers to place it directly in a lab, as opposed to a data center with much more restrictive access. “LASP evaluated our system very rigorously, and determined that our performance, low power requirements and ease of installation provided the best alternative for their needs,” said SiCortex CEO Dr. John Mucci. “This was a very gratifying win, and further supports our view that the higher education market is a huge area of opportunity for us.”
The systems will be utilized by the Data Systems group within LASP, which handles the algorithm development, data management and data system expertise to ensure that LASP’s research scientists deliver the highest quality scientific data products and results. Their data acquisition operations for real-time satellite and space craft implementation require their systems to be highly reliable. LASP, among the world’s leading space science institutes, has active programs in planetary, solar and space physics. It has sent instruments to every planet in the solar system and has developed suites of instruments to observe the Earth’s atmosphere and the Sun. The SiCortex SC648 will be used primarily to support theoretical modeling of solar and planetary dynamical processes. “The work we do is computationally-intensive, so high performance computing resources are always at a premium,” said Mark Rast, an LASP solar physicist and one of the primary users of the SiCortex system. “The SC648 will enable us to have a dedicated, high performance Linux system within our group, with the added benefit of significant power savings.” The SC648, part of the SiCortex family of Linux multicore systems, provides well over a half-teraflop of peak performance and plugs into a standard 110v outlet. The system’s small footprint and exceptional power efficiency will enable LASP researchers to place it directly in a lab, as opposed to a data center with much more restrictive access. “LASP evaluated our system very rigorously, and determined that our performance, low power requirements and ease of installation provided the best alternative for their needs,” said SiCortex CEO Dr. John Mucci. “This was a very gratifying win, and further supports our view that the higher education market is a huge area of opportunity for us.”