Supercharged supercomputer for Bureau of Meteorology

The Department of the Environment has ordered a new supercomputer to deliver faster, more accurate weather forecast warnings across the country.

The ministry has signed a US$59 million ($79.7 million) contract with Cray to deliver an XC40 supercomputer to the Bureau of Meteorology in mid-2016.

Minister for the Environment Greg Hunt said the new supercomputer will have about 16 times the capacity of the bureau’s current weather forecasting computer.

It will be a 1660 teraflop supercomputer, upgradeable to 5 petaflops, and have more than 12 petabytes of storage.

“This will enable the bureau to issue forecasts and warnings more often and with greater certainty and precision than ever before, giving the community and emergency services unprecedented information, particularly prior to and during severe and extreme weather,” he said.

“Every summer we see how vital bureau services are in warning of weather associated with bushfires, thunderstorms, tropical cyclones, flooding, rain and dangerous winds. Our nation is always going to be vulnerable to these events and the bureau gives us the information we need to plan and act.”

The system will be used for the wide range of services provided by the organisation, such as specialised forecasts for the aviation, maritime, agriculture and resource industries.

Funding for the new supercomputer was allocated in the 2014-15 federal Budget.

Image courtesy NASA