Media Invitation: Introducing Stampede, A New Supercomputer to Enable and Accelerate Open Science Research in the United States

-- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- You’re invited to the dedication of Stampede, a new supercomputer that enables and accelerates open science research in the U.S. and solidifies Texas’ growing reputation for scientific and technological leadership: Wednesday, March 27, at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus starting at 3:00 p.m.

WHAT

A national team of supercomputing experts is dedicating Stampede, one of the world’s most powerful supercomputers, deployed by the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) at The University of Texas at Austin.

Supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the 2.2-petaflop base cluster accepted by NSF in February is specifically designed to support thousands of diverse research projects across the United States, enabling widespread scientific and engineering advances not previously possible. Stampede is the largest Dell public production cluster deployed to date, and features Dell’s latest PowerEdge servers.

In addition, TACC has nearly completed integration of the largest configuration of the new Intel Xeon Phi parallel coprocessors into Stampede, providing more than seven petaflops of additional performance. The integrated Stampede system is nearly 10 petaflops, capable of performing nearly 10 quadrillion mathematical operations a second—that’s one million, multiplied by one million, multiplied by ten thousand.

Promising research is already underway to predict the frequency of damaging earthquakes in California; to better identify and image brain tumors by combining MRI scan data with biophysical models to represent the full extent of tumor growth; and to design nanocatalysts that capture CO2 from exhaust and convert it into a valuable substance used in industrial applications.

WHO

The following stakeholders will speak at the dedication: Congressman Lamar Smith; President William Powers (The University of Texas at Austin); Michael Dell (Dell Inc.); Diane Bryant (Intel); Farnam Jahanian (National Science Foundation); and Jay Boisseau (Texas Advanced Computing Center).

WHY

Increased computational capability makes a significant difference in a researcher’s ability to model and simulate complex physical phenomena. Leading scientists are addressing society’s greatest challenges using Stampede to push the frontiers of science and engineering.

WHEN & WHERE

Wednesday, March 27: J.J. Pickle Research Campus, 10100 Burnet, Commons Building, Austin.

• 3:00-4:00pm Welcome Reception (Atrium, Commons Building)
• 4:00-4:45pm Dedication Remarks (Big Tex Auditorium, Commons Building)
• 4:45-5:15pm Media Q&A (Big Tex Auditorium, Commons Building)
• 5:15-6:00pm System Tours (ROC, Building 196 – shuttle available)

PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES

• Refer to agenda above.
• High-res, downloadable photos of the Stampede supercomputer are available: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/42452037/StampedePics.zip