Supercomputer to probe origins of the universe

A new supercomputer is being launched which scientists hope will answer questions about the origins of the universe.

Reminiscent of Deep Thought, the fictional computer which was designed to find the answer to “life, the universe and everything” in The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy books by Douglas Adams, the Sciama is aimed at finding out how our universe began.

The new supercomputer, which has the power of 1,000 desktop computers, has been installed at the University of Portsmouth to receive and process large amounts of astronomical data.

It is capable of doing a billion calculations every second and will be used to expand our knowledge of galaxies and gravity.

Researchers at the university’s Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation will use the supercomputer to simulate vast regions of the universe, investigate the properties of hundreds of millions of galaxies and solve complex cosmological problems.

Gary Burton, ICG’s senior specialist technician, will be responsible for managing the supercomputer.

He said: “Sciama is a cluster of computers linked together to make a far more powerful machine.

“It can do a billion calculations each second and follow the movement of billions of particles in a simulation.

“The huge power of a super­computer like Sciama is necessary to deal with the vast amount of observational data coming from satellites, telescopes and other detectors.

“Using it will allow us to explore the whole of cosmic history and analyse data that contains fundamental clues about the origins of the universe.”

The supercomputer was named Sciama after Dennis Sciama, a leading figure internationally in the development of astrophysics and cosmology. The acronym also stands for SEPnet Computing Infrastructure for Astrophysical Modelling and Analysis.