Research Report: Space Super-Computer

November 8, 2006

Experts say space science has a lot of potential, but it hasn’t had much computer power behind it. So, get ready for the first super-computer in space. Working with NASA and Honeywell, University of Florida engineers are developing a super-computer to work in space. Currently, scientific satellites download raw data back to the ground, but UF computer engineer Alan George says space scientists face increasingly limited bandwidth for those downloads.

George: “It’s becoming more and more important to be able to process the data where it exists, where it’s captured, which means right there in the space vehicle. So, historically, high-performance computing or super-computing has not been a major requirement in space. But in recent years and certainly NASA’s strategic plan makes it clear that in future years it’ll be of paramount importance.”

Engineers had to figure out how to overcome space challenges such as weight, power, and radiation.

George: “So you have to design a system in what’s called a ‘fault-tolerant’ way, so that you expect the faults to happen and you design the system so it can withstand the faults, reconfigure, and keep operating. And that’s exactly what this kind of system is designed to do.”

This new system’s already on the launch schedule, set to liftoff in February 2009.