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NEC Online Video	Supercomputers
Innovation for tomorrow Venue mgt. solution Supercomputers Virtualised desktop IP Telephony Solution Bioplastic Biometrics ID Solution Biometrics Security Solution Mobile Internet Grid Storage Platform
	Established in 1854, the Met Office in the UK is the world’s oldest forecasting organisation. They are relied upon to produce regular daily weather reports – hours and days ahead. THE CHALLENGE The key challenge is the sheer amount of data the scientists are required to analyse. Derrick Ryall, Head of Government Meteorological Research; In order to predict the weather you need to collect a huge volume of data.- of weather observations. So that includes satellite observations, measurements made on the ground, measurements made by ships by aircraft and various techniques. All these have to be combined to create a picture of what’s happening to the weather at the moment. And it is from that picture that you can forecast the weather over the coming hours and days. THE SOLUTION The only way that they can approach a solution to this problem is by using a supercomputer. They needed the fastest and most reliable machine they could find. Situated in brand new premises in Exeter, England, they installed the super fast multi-node NEC SX-8 system as the hub of their forecasting. THE TECHNOLOGY The SX-8 is quite simply one of the biggest and fastest computers in the world. It’s the equivalent of Three and a half thousand PC’s with a main memory of nearly 2000 terabytes and a capability of more than a trillion calculations per second. Derrick Ryall, Head of Government Meteorological Research; The mathematical models that we use now are extremely complex to represent the atmosphere, the oceans, the land, the ice etc. so an extremely complex pieces of code. NEC’s reputation for reliability was vital for the relationship with the Met Office. Steve Noyes,Operations and Customer Services Director; Since NEC were appointed as contractor they worked very hard to make sure they understand our business – a team from NEC become integrated very much into the Met Office team. They really have become an integrated and seamless component of the Met office operation. THE BENEFIT People all over the UK benefit from the weather forecasts produced by the NEC SX-8. But there is one more area where the supercomputer is used – that is of concern to the whole of the planet. Global Warming. Derrick Ryall, Head of Government Meteorological Research; Clearly climate change is the single biggest challenge facing society today and the impact is likely to be huge. Steve Noyes,Operations and Customer Services Director; Forecasting the weather and climate changes demands really sophisticated and very complex models. Having the supercomputer at the size and capability that NEC offers really enable us to do what really is probably the most sophisticated modelling carried out in anywhere in the world. Predicting global warming and the weather using the NEC supercomputer. It’s a vital partnership, using technology to help the world.
		NEC's powerful supercomputers at the UK MET Office contribute to predicting climate change. Duration [ 03:04 ]
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