HPC from A-Z (part 21) - U

U is for universe modeling

As we near the end of our HPC ABC we’ve seen a wide range of HPC examples. It literally does not get bigger than this one…

Our H blog post explained how CERN’s Large Hadron Collider is using HPC to crunch data and determine the origins of the universe. What many don’t know is it can also be used to see how our universe might grow. According to Scientific American, the diameter of the observable universe is at least 93 billion light years or 8.80×1026 meters [1]. So, the big question is how fast does it expand? HPC can help calculate the rate at which the universe is expanding.

Not only can HPC help model our universe, it can also help create fictional universes. Parallel processing can help render imagined virtual worlds. Many of today’s games are incredibly immersive and realistic, and HPC can play an important part in powering that level of reality by reducing the amount of time it takes to create complex graphics.