IBM builts the fastest Supercomputer

Arv90 · Jun 18, 2012

A supercomputer built by the technology giant IBM has set a new processing speed world record, reclaiming the title for the United States from a Japanese rival.

The new IBM cluster system, Sequoia, took number one spot in the worldâ€™s fastest 500 supercomputers, a closely-watched measure of international technological prowess.

The machine, which runs the Linux operating system and was first announced in 2009, has been installed across 4,500 square feet of the US Department of Energy's Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, to carry out simulations of nuclear weapons tests.

Sequoia was measured at 16.32 petaflops, or 16 thousand trillion calculations per second, and is said to be capable of 20 petaflops. It unseated the reigning champion, the K Computer, built by Fujitsu in Japan, which is capable of more than 10 petaflops.

You can find the full top 10 supercomputer list at top500.org. Below is a chart comparing the IBM Sequoia with the Fujitsu K Computer;

[TD="align: left"] IBM Sequoia [/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"] Fujitsu K Computer [/TD]

[TD="width: 198, align: left"]Performance[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]16.32 petaflops[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]10.51 petaflops[/TD]

[TD="width: 198, align: left"]Architecture[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]45nm IBM Power[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]45nm SPARC64 VIIIfx[/TD]

[TD="width: 198, align: left"]Cores[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]1,572,864[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]705,024[/TD]

[TD="width: 198, align: left"]Power usage[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]7.9 megawatts[/TD]
[TD="width: 205, align: left"]12.66 megawatts[/TD]