Computer simulates nuclear reactors

The Idaho National Laboratory (INL) in southeast Idaho has opened a high-speed computing center to simulate the operation of nuclear reactors. “Think of this as a new laboratory, because that’s what it is,” the INL Director told the Post Register. The INL on Monday dedicated the $10 million center that includes a main computer called “Icestorm.” Thesupercomputer can run three-dimensional simulations to show how nuclear reactors might operate under certain conditions. It has data collected from reactors all over the world. Icestorm can make as many calculations in one day as a home computer can make in five years, officials said, and has three times the computing power of the computer it replaces. The principal deputy assistant secretary for the Department of Energy said the computer, combined with the Advanced Test Reactor at INL and $15 million in equipment for the examination of materials that have been irradiated, allows the laboratory to conduct experiments faster and more thoroughly.

Source: http://www.casperstartribune.net/articles/2007/12/12/news/regional/dd88cf99d992af4c872573ae0071fb88.txt