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Gauss Centre for Supercomputing gets Europe’s first petaflop computer.

Three supercomputers were unveiled in Jülich at a ceremony attended by Federal Research Minister Prof. Dr. Annette Schavan and Dr. Jürgen Rüttgers, Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). They will boost European research and include JUGENE, Europe’s fastest supercomputer with a capacity of one petafl op/s. "It shows how NRW is a leader in strategically important innovative sectors," said Rüttgers, "with Jülich as a key contributor."

"It’s a good day for the German Gauss Centre and Europe. The decision highlights Germany's lead in supercomputing," said Minister Schavan. Stuttgart, Garching and Jülich form the Gauss Centre for Supercomputing. They ensure that users get the hardware, software and support they need in an ideal research environment. "Our strategy of a supercomputing partnership for Germany has been confirmed," said Schavan.

"JUGENE secures Europe's access to a key technology of the 21st century," said Prof. Dr. Achim Bachem, Chairman of the Board at the Forschungszentrum Jülich and coordinator of the EU funded Partner ship for Advanced Computing in Europe (PRACE). Researchers from all disciplines use the computers to see how the climate is changing, how proteins are folded in cells, how new semiconductors work or how fuel cells can be improved. "Jülich's new supercomputer manages a trillion arithmetic operations per second," explained Prof. Dr. Dr. Thomas Lippert of the Jülich Supercomputing Centre.

More information: www.fz-juelich.de/portal/index.php?cmd=show&mid=705&index=163