ScienceDaily (Nov. 25, 2009) — Technology designed to blast aliens in computer games is part of a new GPU (Graphics Processing Units) computer cluster that will process CSIRO research data thousands of times faster and more efficiently than a desktop PC.

The GPU cluster will be able to speed up the reconstruction of 3-D images, such as this wood microstructure created from many 2-D images. (Credit: CSIRO)

The new GPU cluster will complement the supercomputing resources available to CSIRO researchers such as the recently installed NCI facility at the Australian National University.

The cluster will allow CSIRO scientists to explore what may well be the next generation approach to supercomputing, the use of GPU technology for parallel processing.

The CSIRO GPU cluster is being launched in Canberra.

The first of its kind in Australia, the cluster is about the size of six large refrigerators and contains 61,440 compute cores.

CSIRO Computational and Simulation Science leader Dr John Taylor said the computer cluster combines Central Processing Units (CPUs) like those in PCs with more powerful Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) to make it more efficient.

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