DiRAC: Memory Intensive 2.5y
Lead Research Organisation:
Durham University
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
Physicists across the astronomy, nuclear and particle physics communities are focussed on understanding how the Universe works at a very fundamental level. The distance scales with which they work vary by 50 orders of magnitude from the smallest distances probed by experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, deep within the atomic nucleus, to the largest scale galaxy clusters discovered out in space. The Science challenges, however, are linked through questions such as: How did the Universe begin and how is it evolving? and What are the fundamental constituents and fabric of the Universe and how do they interact?
Progress requires new astronomical observations and experimental data but also new theoretical insights. Theoretical understanding comes increasingly from large-scale computations that allow us to confront the consequences of our theories very accurately with the data or allow us to interrogate the data in detail to extract information that has impact on our theories. These computations test the fastest computers that we have and push the boundaries of technology in this sector. They also provide an excellent environment for training students in state-of-the-art techniques for code optimisation and data mining and visualisation.
The DiRAC2 HPC facility has been operating since 2012, providing computing resources for theoretical research in all areas of particle physics, astronomy, cosmology and nuclear physics supported by STFC. It is a highly productive facility, generating 200-250 papers annually in international, peer-reviewed journals. However, the DiRAC facility risks becoming uncompetitive as it has remained static in terms of overall capability since 2012. The DiRAC-2.5x investment in 2017/18 mitigated the risk of hardware failures, by replacing our oldest hardware components. However, as the factor 5 oversubscription of the most recent RAC call demonstrated, the science programme in 2019/20 and beyond requires a significant uplift in DiRAC's compute capability. The main purpose of the requested funding for the DiRAC2.5y project is to provide a factor 2 increase in computing across all DiRAC services to enable the facility to remain competitive during 2019/20 in anticipation of future funding for DiRAC-3.
DiRAC2.5y builds on the success of the DiRAC HPC facility and will provide the resources needed to support cutting-edge research during 2019 in all areas of science supported by STFC. While the funding is required to remain competitive, the science programme will continue to be world-leading. Examples of the projects which will benefit from this investment include:
(i) lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD) calculations of the properties of fundamental particles from first principles;
(ii) improving the potential of experiments at CERN's Large Hadron Collider for discovery of new physics by increasing the accuracy of theoretical predictions for rare processes involving the fundamental constituents of matter known as quarks;
(iii) simulations of the merger of pairs of black holes and which generate gravitational waves such as those recently discovered by the LIGO consortium;
(iv) the most realistic simulations to date of the formation and evolution of galaxies in the Universe;
(v) the accretion of gas onto supermassive black holes, the most efficient means of extracting energy from matter and the engine which drives galaxy evolution; (vi) new models of our own Milky Way galaxy calibrated using new data from the European Space Agency's GAIA satellite; (vii) detailed simulations of the interior of the sun and of planetary interiors; (viii) the formation of stars in clusters - for the first time it will be possible to follow the formation of massive stars.
Progress requires new astronomical observations and experimental data but also new theoretical insights. Theoretical understanding comes increasingly from large-scale computations that allow us to confront the consequences of our theories very accurately with the data or allow us to interrogate the data in detail to extract information that has impact on our theories. These computations test the fastest computers that we have and push the boundaries of technology in this sector. They also provide an excellent environment for training students in state-of-the-art techniques for code optimisation and data mining and visualisation.
The DiRAC2 HPC facility has been operating since 2012, providing computing resources for theoretical research in all areas of particle physics, astronomy, cosmology and nuclear physics supported by STFC. It is a highly productive facility, generating 200-250 papers annually in international, peer-reviewed journals. However, the DiRAC facility risks becoming uncompetitive as it has remained static in terms of overall capability since 2012. The DiRAC-2.5x investment in 2017/18 mitigated the risk of hardware failures, by replacing our oldest hardware components. However, as the factor 5 oversubscription of the most recent RAC call demonstrated, the science programme in 2019/20 and beyond requires a significant uplift in DiRAC's compute capability. The main purpose of the requested funding for the DiRAC2.5y project is to provide a factor 2 increase in computing across all DiRAC services to enable the facility to remain competitive during 2019/20 in anticipation of future funding for DiRAC-3.
DiRAC2.5y builds on the success of the DiRAC HPC facility and will provide the resources needed to support cutting-edge research during 2019 in all areas of science supported by STFC. While the funding is required to remain competitive, the science programme will continue to be world-leading. Examples of the projects which will benefit from this investment include:
(i) lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD) calculations of the properties of fundamental particles from first principles;
(ii) improving the potential of experiments at CERN's Large Hadron Collider for discovery of new physics by increasing the accuracy of theoretical predictions for rare processes involving the fundamental constituents of matter known as quarks;
(iii) simulations of the merger of pairs of black holes and which generate gravitational waves such as those recently discovered by the LIGO consortium;
(iv) the most realistic simulations to date of the formation and evolution of galaxies in the Universe;
(v) the accretion of gas onto supermassive black holes, the most efficient means of extracting energy from matter and the engine which drives galaxy evolution; (vi) new models of our own Milky Way galaxy calibrated using new data from the European Space Agency's GAIA satellite; (vii) detailed simulations of the interior of the sun and of planetary interiors; (viii) the formation of stars in clusters - for the first time it will be possible to follow the formation of massive stars.
Planned Impact
The anticipated impact of the DiRAC2.5y HPC facility aligns closely with the recently published UK Industrial Strategy. As such, many of our key impacts will be driven by our engagements with industry. Each service provider for DiRAC2.5y has a local industrial strategy to deliver increased levels of industrial returns over the next three years. The "Pathways to impact" document which is attached to the lead (Leicester) proposal describes the overall industrial strategy for the DiRAC facility, including our strategic goals and key performance indicators.
Organisations
Publications
Hatton D
(2021)
Determination of m ¯ b / m ¯ c and m ¯ b from n f = 4 lattice QCD + QED
in Physical Review D
Hausammann L
(2022)
Continuous Simulation Data Stream: A dynamical timescale-dependent output scheme for simulations
in Astronomy and Computing
Haworth T
(2021)
Warm millimetre dust in protoplanetary discs near massive stars
Haworth T
(2021)
Warm millimetre dust in protoplanetary discs near massive stars
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
He J
(2020)
Modelling the tightest relation between galaxy properties and dark matter halo properties from hydrodynamical simulations of galaxy formation
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
He Q
(2022)
Galaxy-galaxy strong lens perturbations: line-of-sight haloes versus lens subhaloes
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Heinesen A
(2021)
A prediction for anisotropies in the nearby Hubble flow
Heinesen A
(2022)
A prediction for anisotropies in the nearby Hubble flow
in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Helfer T
(2022)
Malaise and remedy of binary boson-star initial data
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Henden N
(2019)
The redshift evolution of X-ray and Sunyaev-Zel'dovich scaling relations in the fable simulations
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2018)
Large-scale redshift space distortions in modified gravity theories
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2023)
The MillenniumTNG Project: high-precision predictions for matter clustering and halo statistics
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2022)
The MillenniumTNG Project: High-precision predictions for matter clustering and halo statistics
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2022)
Fast full N-body simulations of generic modified gravity: derivative coupling models
in Journal of Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2019)
Large-scale redshift space distortions in modified gravity theories
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2021)
Fast full $N$-body simulations of generic modified gravity: derivative coupling models
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2019)
Measuring the BAO peak position with different galaxy selections
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2020)
Galaxy formation in the brane world I: overview and first results
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2021)
Galaxy formation in the brane world I: overview and first results
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hernández-Aguayo C
(2021)
Building a digital twin of a luminous red galaxy spectroscopic survey: galaxy properties and clustering covariance
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Herzog G
(2023)
The present-day gas content of simulated field dwarf galaxies
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Herzog G
(2022)
The present-day gas content of simulated field dwarf galaxies
Hilbert S
(2019)
The Accuracy of Weak Lensing Simulations
Hillier A
(2023)
The role of cooling induced by mixing in the mass and energy cycles of the solar atmosphere
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Ho S
(2021)
How Identifying Circumgalactic Gas by Line-of-sight Velocity instead of the Location in 3D Space Affects O vi Measurements
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ho S
(2020)
Morphological and Rotation Structures of Circumgalactic Mg ii Gas in the EAGLE Simulation and the Dependence on Galaxy Properties
in The Astrophysical Journal
Horst L
(2021)
Multidimensional low-Mach number time-implicit hydrodynamic simulations of convective helium shell burning in a massive star
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Hough R
(2023)
SIMBA - C : an updated chemical enrichment model for galactic chemical evolution in the SIMBA simulation
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Howson T
(2021)
Magnetic reconnection and the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability in the solar corona
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Huang J
(2023)
Global 3D Radiation Magnetohydrodynamic Simulations of Accretion onto a Stellar-mass Black Hole at Sub- and Near-critical Accretion Rates
in The Astrophysical Journal
Huscher E
(2021)
The changing circumgalactic medium over the last 10 Gyr - I. Physical and dynamical properties
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Hutt M
(2022)
The effect of local Universe constraints on halo abundance and clustering
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Huško F
(2023)
The complex interplay of AGN jet-inflated bubbles and the intracluster medium
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society