The Cheyenne supercomputer, previously one of the world’s most powerful and energy-efficient supercomputers, is currently up for auction. This system, which was inaugurated in late 2016, features 145,152 cores across 4,032 dual-socket Xeon E5-2697v4 nodes and 313TB of DDR4-2400 memory, with a peak performance of 5.34 petaflops4. The auction details suggest that the supercomputer is being sold off in parts, mainly to render farms, and discussions on platforms like Reddit and Hacker News indicate a significant interest in the hardware for various uses, including gaming systems and low-budget hosting services49.
The Cheyenne supercomputer was initially housed at the NCAR-Wyoming Supercomputing Center and was a critical tool for researchers studying a wide range of geosciences, including climate change, severe weather, and geomagnetic storms12. Its capabilities allowed it to perform more than triple the amount of scientific computing of its predecessor, the Yellowstone supercomputer, and it was three times more energy-efficient2.
The auction of such a significant piece of computing history highlights the rapid pace of technological advancement in supercomputing, as newer and more powerful systems like the Derecho supercomputer, which boasts 19.87 petaflops, continue to be developed and deployed10. The sale of the Cheyenne supercomputer parts will likely attract interest from various sectors, including those looking to repurpose the technology for less intensive computational tasks or for parts resale49.
