Frequently asked questions about NCSA

Q. So, what do you do?
A. Well, as you can probably guess from our name, NCSA is home to supercomputers. These fast, powerful systems are used by scientists and engineers across the country. The people who work at NCSA help these researchers use the supercomputers effectively. We also develop software, tools, and technologies to aid research.

Q. I understand how scientists use microscopes and telescopes and experiments, but how do they use computers?
A. With microscopes we can observe the very small; with telescopes we can see distant stars. An experiment can determine how chemicals interact. But microscopes and telescopes see only so far. Experimenting with all the myriad combinations of chemicals could take forever (and could lead to dangerously exothermic results—that means explosions!). And some phenomena can't be recreated in a lab—you can't create a model universe in a test tube!

That's where computers come in. Researchers have developed mathematical models of the natural world. How do atoms bond and break apart? How do wind speed, temperature, pressure and other variables interact? Supercomputers quickly perform the many complex calculations describing these phenomena and produce data simulating the way molecules move through the wall of a single cell or how a tornado forms.

Q. Who gets to use NCSA's supercomputers?
A. The supercomputers at NCSA are used by more than 2,000 scientists and engineers across the country. Most are at universities and other research centers; we also collaborate with businesses.

Supercomputers are powerful scientific instruments, just like a large telescope or a particle accelerator, and are shared by the nation's researchers.

Q. Can people who aren't at the University of Illinois use the supercomputers at NCSA?
A. Yes, the supercomputers at NCSA are available to scientists and engineers anywhere in the United States. And you don't have to travel to Urbana-Champaign—researchers access the computers remotely.

Q. How much does it cost to use the supercomputers?
A. There is no charge for academic researchers to use NCSA's supercomputers—it's free!

The supercomputers at NCSA (and at several other national centers) are supported by the National Science Foundation in order to give U.S. scientists and engineers the resources they need to develop new treatments for disease, improve forecasting of severe storms, and better understand our world, from the interaction to atoms to the evolution of the universe.

Q. What is a supercomputer, anyway? How big does a computer have to be before it's "super"?
A. A supercomputer is a fast, powerful computer. In the past, supercomputers were always specially designed systems, but now many are "clusters" made up of thousands of the same sort of hardware that you could use at home or work. A few years ago, NCSA even built a cluster from PlayStation2™ gaming units!

When NCSA opened in the mid-1980s, our first supercomputer was about as powerful as today's desktop machines—that's a measure of how much computer technology has changed in the past two decades! Today, most supercomputers can perform trillions of calculations every second.

NCSA's current supercomputers are:

• Mercury - 10 trillion calculations per second (10 teraflops)
• Cobalt - 8 trillion calculations per second (8 teraflops)
• Abe - 89 trillion calculations per second (89 teraflops)
• Lincoln - 47 trillion calculations per second (47 teraflops)

NCSA is working with IBM on a new system called Blue Waters, due to come online in 2011, that will perform 1 quadrillion calculations every second. That's more powerful than 1 million laptops!

Q. I've heard about a new supercomputer called "Blue Waters." What is it and what makes it special?
A. Blue Waters is a project supported by the National Science Foundation that is under way at the University of Illinois in collaboration with IBM and partners across the country. While today's supercomputers typically perform trillions of calculations every second, Blue Waters will deliver 1 quadrillion calculations every second (a measure known as 1 petaflop).

Making this even more impressive is the fact that Blue Waters will sustain performance of 1 petaflop when researchers are running the software applications they use to model weather, molecules, or galaxies. Usually in the supercomputing world we talk about peak performance, which is the speed you can achieve running a benchmark program; the performance researchers really achieve is a fraction of this peak. But when we say Blue Waters will reach 1 petaflop, we mean 1 petaflop!

Just like the other supercomputers at NCSA, Blue Waters will be available to scientists and engineers across the country for non-classified research.

Q. Is NCSA open for tours?
A. NCSA frequently gives tours to students, teachers, collaborators, and the public. If you would like to arrange a tour for your group, fill out our short online form or contact Trish Barker: 217-265-8013.

Where is NCSA? How do I get there?
A. NCSA is on the Urbana-Champaign campus of the University of Illinois. The address is 1205 W. Clark St., Urbana.

The University of Illinois' Willard Airport (CMI) is served by American Airlines and Northwest Airlink.

Other regional airports are: Indianapolis International Airport (IND), Indianapolis, Indiana (120 miles/190 kilometers away); O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Chicago, Illinois (140 miles/220 kilometers away); and Central Illinois Regional Airport (BMI), Bloomington, Illinois (less than 60 miles/100 kilometers away).

You can also reach Champaign-Urbana via Amtrak train or Greyhound bus service. The Lincolnland Express also provides shuttle bus service between Urbana-Champaign and all regional airports and Chicago's Union Station.

Driving directions are available on the NCSA website.

The Champaign County Visitors Guide offers information on taxis and other transportation.