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Towards Ultra-High Resolution Models of Climate and WeatherCRD/NERSC, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720
CRD/NERSC, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, loliker{at}lbl.gov
CRD/NERSC, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720 We present a speculative extrapolation of the performance aspects of an atmospheric general circulation model to ultra-high resolution and describe alternative technological paths to realize integration of such a model in the relatively near future. Due to a superlinear scaling of the computational burden dictated by stability criterion, the solution of the equations of motion dominate the calculation at ultra-high resolutions. From this extrapolation, it is estimated that a credible kilometer scale atmospheric model would require at least a sustained ten petaflop computer to provide scientifically useful climate simulations. Our design study portends an alternate strategy for practical power-efficient implementations of petaflop scale systems. Embedded processor technology could be exploited to tailor a custom machine designed to ultra-high climate model specifications at relatively affordable cost and power considerations. The major conceptual changes required by a kilometer scale climate model are certain to be difficult to implement. Although the hardware, software, and algorithms are all equally critical in conducting ultra-high climate resolution studies, it is likely that the necessary petaflop computing technology will be available in advance of a credible kilometer scale climate model
Key Words: climate model • atmospheric general circulation model • finite volume model • global warming • petascale simulation • power efficient computing • embedded processor
International Journal of High Performance Computing Applications, Vol. 22, No. 2,
149-165 (2008) |
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