The new supercomputer "AOBA" of the Tohoku University Cyber Science Center will start operation from October 10st.The total calculation performance is 1 petaflops that can execute 1 trillion operations per second, which is 1,800 times higher than the previous system.It has a function to temporarily suspend the use of academic research in the event of an emergency such as a large earthquake, and to carry out emergency measures for disaster prevention and mitigation.
According to Tohoku University, AOBA consists of two subsystems, "AOBA-A" for vector computers (* 1) and "AOBA-B" for x86 servers (* 2). AOBA-A has a better balance between computing performance and memory performance than ordinary computers, and is expected to be widely used in the AI (artificial intelligence) field, etc., assuming the execution of calculation programs originally developed by researchers.
AOBA-B is supposed to run commercial applications and open source software that anyone can handle freely. The two subsystems are connected by a high-speed network.
A system for predicting tsunami inundation damage areas when a tsunami is expected to occur in an earthquake with a magnitude of 7 or more has been operated by Tohoku University's supercomputer, and AOBA inherits this role.The Tohoku University Cyber Science Center is said to be a social foundation that establishes safety and security in terms of both expanding use in new fields and disaster mitigation functions in the event of a disaster.
* 1 Vector computer A computer capable of vector operations, which is one of the types of parallel computing in the field of computer science.
* 2 x86 server A server based on a personal computer, also called a PC server.
