- Virga cluster by CSIRO in Australia uses Dell XE9640 AI rackservers for high-performance computing.
- Located at CDC Hume Data Center in Canberra, featuring 14 racks with direct liquid cooling for enhanced energy efficiency.
- Equipped with PowerEdge XE9640 servers, Gen 4 Xeon processors, Nvidia H100 GPUs, and Nvidia Infiniband NDR for high-speed connectivity.
- Supports intensive AI workloads, including medical image analysis and AI model training for healthcare applications.
- Ranked 72nd on the Top500 list with 60,000 cores and a peak performance of 18.46 PFLOPS, showcasing significant computational capabilities.
- Collaboration with Queensland Children’s Hospital focuses on AI-driven pathology diagnosis from MRI scans in cystic fibrosis patients.
Main AI News:
Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has unveiled its latest initiative, the Virga cluster, powered by Dell XE9640 AI rackservers. Situated at the CDC Hume Data Center in Canberra, this high-performance computing powerhouse marks a significant leap forward in AI-driven research capabilities within Australia.
Named after a meteorological phenomenon symbolizing CSIRO’s longstanding expertise in cloud and rain physics, the Virga cluster integrates cutting-edge technology to drive advancements in healthcare, particularly in cystic fibrosis diagnosis and treatment. Equipped with 14 racks of Dell servers utilizing direct liquid cooling technology, Virga sets a new standard for energy efficiency in computational research.
“The deployment of Dell PowerEdge servers underpins Virga’s role in fostering groundbreaking scientific discoveries across Australia,” remarked Angela Fox, Senior Vice President and Managing Director for Dell Technologies Australia and New Zealand. “This next-generation cluster not only enhances sustainability but also accelerates AI capabilities essential for national strategies such as the National Robotics Strategy.“
Virga’s hardware configuration includes PowerEdge XE9640 servers featuring Gen 4 Xeon Platinum 8452Y processors, Nvidia H100 GPUs, and Nvidia Infiniband NDR for high-speed interconnectivity. With up to 500 GB of DRAM and 61.44 TB NVMe SSDs per node, Virga boasts a formidable 246 TB of flash storage per server, supporting intensive AI model training and large-scale data analytics.
Nvidia’s Transformer Engine library further enhances Virga’s computational power, enabling rapid model training and deployment across various research domains. Ranked 72nd on the Top500 list with 60,000 cores and a peak performance of 18.46 PFLOPS, Virga represents a pivotal resource in advancing Australia’s scientific capabilities.
“The integration of Nvidia’s technologies within Virga underscores our commitment to driving innovation in medical research,” noted Dr. Jason Dowling of CSIRO’s Australian e-Health Research Centre. “These HPC facilities will significantly accelerate the development of AI-driven solutions for medical image analysis, benefiting initiatives like our collaboration with Queensland Children’s Hospital on cystic fibrosis diagnostics.”
With its robust infrastructure and strategic capabilities, the Virga cluster stands poised to revolutionize scientific discovery and healthcare innovation across Australia, embodying a synergy of computational excellence and sustainable technology advancement.
Conclusion:
The launch of Australia’s Virga cluster represents a substantial leap in computational capabilities for healthcare and scientific research. By integrating advanced AI technologies with efficient infrastructure, CSIRO is poised to lead in medical innovation, setting a precedent for sustainable, high-performance computing solutions in the market.
