DDN in Collaboration With Atos

DataDirect Networks, Inc. has collaborated with Atos SE to enhance weather prediction capabilities for the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF).

ECMWF will be equipped with an enhanced computing capacity to help predict the occurrence and intensity of extreme weather events ahead of time, with an improved infrastructure comprised of more than 91PB of DDN EXAScaler storage, connected to BullSequana XH2000 HPC from Atos.

“Weather forecasting is computationally expensive and demands the best in high-performance computing power,” said Florence Rabier, general director, ECMWF. “Our new supercomputing capabilities will enable us to deliver much-improved numerical weather predictions while maximizing energy efficiency.“

The BullSequana XH2000 HPC from Atos will be deployed at the ECMWF data center in Bologna, Italy, in 2020 and will be one of the world’s most powerful meteorological HPCs, supporting weather prediction researchers from over 30 countries across Europe. With the new platform utilizing EXAScaler, ECMWF will be able to run higher resolution weather forecasts in under an hour, improving their ability to predict increasingly severe weather phenomena.

“Scientists and researchers are continuously pursuing new ways to improve weather predictions and research. EXAScaler storage solutions will accelerate one of the most powerful meteorological services HPCs in the world,” said Paul Bloch, president and co-founder, DDN. “EXAScaler is designed and uniquely engineered to meet the demands of data-intensive climate and weather simulations. Our collaboration with Atos and ECMWF will provide solutions that deliver the ultimate performance to reduce time to discovery and unlock innovation.“

In addition to EXAScaler, the BullSequana XH2000 is equipped with AMD EPYC processors and Mellanox HDR IB (200Gb/s) solutions, enhancing the system’s overall speed, efficiency and stability.

“Our BullSequana XH2000 and EXAScaler combined solution, provides more computing power to support users to go beyond the limits of traditional simulation,” said Agnès Boudot, SVP, head of HPC and Quantum, Atos. “As the leading European HPC manufacturer, we are proud to be working together with DDN and ECMWF to not only boost Europe’s weather prediction capabilities and take proactive precautions as needed, but to also explore new technologies to be prepared for next-gen applications.“