In a momentous ceremony, Deucalion, the latest Portuguese addition to the European High-Performance Computing (EuroHPC) initiative, was inaugurated at the University of Minho in Guimarães, Portugal. The event was attended by high-ranking officials, including the Portuguese Prime Minister, António Costa – marking a significant step towards enhancing Europe’s prowess in supercomputing.
Deucalion Supercomputer Inauguration
The inauguration ceremony witnessed the presence of key figures such as the Portuguese Minister of Science, Technology, and Higher Education, Elvira Fortunato, Madalena Alves, President of the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), Thomas Skordas, Deputy Director General for Communication Networks, Content, and Technology of the European Commission (CNECT), and Anders Dam Jensen, EuroHPC Joint Undertaking’s Executive Director.
With its immense computing power Deucalion is a petascale supercomputer capable of executing over 10 petaflops, equivalent to 10 million billion calculations per second.
As the most powerful supercomputer in Portugal, Deucalion’s computational capabilities will be accessible to users not only in Portugal, through the National Network for Advanced Computing (RNCA), managed by the Portuguese NREN – FCCN, but also throughout Europe. This addition enriches the diverse set of computing architectures offered by EuroHPC systems, promising to accelerate research and development across a wide spectrum of fields such as advanced research in meteorology, climate modeling, fluid dynamics, aerodynamics, astrophysics, cosmology, among others.
Anders Dam Jensen, EuroHPC Executive Director, expressed his enthusiasm about Deucalion’s inauguration, stating, “I extend a warm welcome to Deucalion as the latest addition to our expanding family of EuroHPC supercomputers. Deucalion stands as another proof of Europe’s dedication to technological excellence and collaborative innovation. Today’s inauguration is a new milestone towards our mission of making Europe a global leader in high-performance computing.”
João Nuno Ferreira, the General Coordinator of the FCT’s FCCN Unit, emphasised the importance of Deucalion in addressing the scarcity of computing resources in Portugal and bridging the gap in supercomputing capabilities within the European Union. He highlighted how Portugal’s participation in the EuroHPC initiative ensures not only technological advancement but also European integration and co-funding.
Madalena Alves, President of FCT, emphasised the accessibility of Deucalion’s resources, stating, “The Deucalion supercomputer is capable of supporting over 200 projects annually and can multiply the national computing capacity by tenfold. High-performance computing generally comes with a high cost. By making this resource accessible to all researchers, institutions, and even companies, we aim to enhance the competitiveness of science and technology developed in Portugal.”
This HPC addition is hosted by the Minho Advanced Computing Centre (MACC) at the University of Minho and was made possible through co-funding. The project joined the Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT), through FCCN, and the European joint company EuroHPC, representing a combined investment of €20 million, with 35% coming from EuroHPC’s community funds and 65% coming from other sources through FCT.
The inauguration of Deucalion marks a significant milestone in Europe’s journey toward supercomputing excellence and collaborative innovation, promising to accelerate groundbreaking research and technological advancements across the continent.
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