Iran has launched its Supercomputer, and they named it ‘Simorgh’. The supercomputer Simorgh is 100 times more quick and powerful than the previous Supercomputer of Iran. Simorgh is developed by Tehran’s Amirkabir University of Technology (AUT). At present, the Iranian supercomputer Simorgh is at the High Performance Computing Research Centre of Iran.
Though Iran is a developing country but its progress in the Information Technology sector is worth appreciating. The launch of the Simorgh supercomputer has become a hot topic to discuss. Iran has named the computer ‘Simorgh’ after a mythical bird-like phoenix.
Iranian Supercomputer Simorgh
Supercomputers are different from the computers we use at home or in offices. They are extremely powerful, quick and accurate. Supercomputers are used in scientific, engineering and other crucial work that needs high speed calculation and computing. The experts need supercomputers to study weather, climate change, new chemical compounds, or other similar complex subjects.
The performance capacity of a supercomputer is measured in petaflops. The performance capacity of Simorgh is 0.56 petaflops.the country claims that in two months, the capacity of the Iranian Supercomputer will reach one petaflop. Iran will be using Simorgh to develop Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, gather data on traffic and weather, and a few other fields.
The Supercomputer is designed and developed by Tehran’s Amirkabir University of Technology (AUT). Developing a supercomputer is an expensive affair, and Simorgh is not an exception. Developing a Supercomputer cost 1 trillion Iranian rials (~$4.5 million) to the country. the total budget allotted to the project is approx 9 million USD.
Though the Supercomputer is made in the country, a few of its parts (hardware) are imported. The authorities haven’t disclosed from which country they have bought the hardware parts of a supercomputer. AUT took one year to develop the Simorgh from scratch.
The Iranian Supercomputer’s initial installation was completed in 42 racks in 250 square metres. According to the media reports, the Supercomputer will be expanded to 84 racks in the next two months. The total occupied space of Simorgh will become 1,305 square feet in the next two months.
Amirkabir President Ahmad Motamedi said that the Supercomputer aims to provide a reliable infrastructure to companies focusing on private firms. Now Iran can use its Supercomputer to attract foreign investment in technology and different sectors.
Key Points About Simorgh Supercomputer
Simorgh is completely developed by Iran, so the country has to face the bans imposed by the United States. The United States has imposed the anti-terrorism section on the country to slow down its nuclear program. According to the imposed restrictions, no other country can do direct business with Iran. Somehow Iran used the US chips in their Supercomputer illegally. Simorgh has other hardware that is not made in Iran. So, the US will not accept Simorgh as a supercomputer. According to some non-official reports, Iran used the bitcoin mining facility to buy the hardware and the chips from the US.
As we have mentioned earlier that Simorgh is developed by Amirkabir University and its not the first time when the university has earned a name in the IT field. Before this, the university developed a 32 node PC based on an Intel Pentium processor. in 2007, AU developed the strongest Supercomputer of their time.
The Conclusion
When many other countries are struggling to develop a supercomputer, the Iranian supercomputer Simorgh will bring a revolution in global IT sector. The country managed to developed a supercomputer despite all the restrictions imposed on it, is appreciating and motivating.
