A next-generation supercomputer named Roadrunner is currently in the development phase in the IBM labs in New Mexico. The supercomputer is claimed to have a performance level of 1 petaflop (alike 1,000 trillion calculations per second) using a conventional cluster of 16,000 AMD Opteron processor cores simultaneously with the 16,000 Cell B.E. chips
Well, the project will cost $110 million over three years of development. When finished, the Roadrunner will be the world’s most powerful computer and will put behind IBM’s BlueGene/L system (pictured above) in terms of power. The computer may possibly be used to help the Department of Energy (DOE) to make sure that the nuclear weapons stocks in the US remains safe and reliable.
The Roadrunner will envelop 12,000 square feet of floor space when it is completed probably in 2008. IBM plans to carry the supercomputer to the DOE facility sometime in the Q3 2007.
Via: DailyTech
