Announcing the BlueFern® HPC Grand Challenge

New Zealand researchers are invited to apply for the BlueFern High Performance Computing (HPC) Grand Challenge. BlueFern is making available one million CPU hours on up to 4096 CPU cores, to challenge New Zealand Researchers to scale up their HPC applications to tackle some of the largest scientific problems in areas such as biochemistry, climate simulation, machine intelligence, molecular dynamics, etc.

Turbocharging New Zealand Science

The BlueFern Grand Challenge aims to drive New Zealand science forward using HPC. We have set aside a million CPU hours specifically for large-scale HPC codes that address significant research problems. Not only will BlueFern be helping NZ researchers solve the most challenging problems, but we will also act as a pathway to overseas programs such as the American INCITE program that awards tens of millions of CPU hours on petaflop systems.

The BlueFern® HPC Grand Challenge is best for:

    •    High impact science and engineering
    •    Huge runs that you cannot do anywhere else
    •    Jobs that can use at least 1/4 of the system for hours to days
    •    Research campaigns requiring millions of CPU hours
    •    Computations that are efficient on the BlueFern BlueGene system

How To Apply

Fill in the form (pdf) and tell us about:

    •    Your research problem that can be addressed with large-scale HPC
    •    The HPC code you will be using, and how it can scale to thousands of CPU cores
    •    A plan listing your requirements to run the HPC code using up to one million CPU hours

The deadline for applications is October 1st, but we encourage you to contact BlueFern ASAP to discuss your grand challenge research. Applications can only be accepted from teams based within New Zealand Institutions.

Updated 30 July 2010