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Sun to Create Underground Japanese Datacenter
Kurtz'sKompund writes with word of a Sun project in Japan, one that's taking a somewhat non-standard approach to data center construction. To save on power, heating, and water costs, the consortium is going to be building their center in an abandoned coal mine. The outpost will be created by lowering Blackbox systems into the ground; estimates on savings run to $9 million annually in electricity alone.
Sun to Create Japanese Datacenter where the Sun don't shine.
This could be an interesting use of the Earth's tendency to be a thermal sink. Caves are always about 55 F, as I recall. Maybe they can use this to their advantage.
You do not have a moral or legal right to do absolutely anything you want.
According to TFA, $9M could be saved on electricity when using 30'000 server cores. Also according to TFA, 10'000 cores are planned with a $405M budget. If power demand scales directly with the number of cores, this would equate savings of $3M annually. Based only on these savings (which of course won't be the only factor, but since TFS and TFA single them out so clearly), this project breaks even after a measly 135 years or about five and a half times Sun's current age.
The Blackbox containers are robust enough to withstand earthquakes, being capable of withstanding a quake of magnitude 6.7 on the Richter scale.
I don't know, but placing servers 100m underground in a place that routinely is hit by large earthquakes seems a dubious idea. The containers themselves may survive a quake, but what happens when the disused coal mine collapses onto and around them? Even if the containers and servers survive, will the power and data cables? If the tunnels collapse how will you get to and from the servers for maintenance?
Three Squirrels
Since this is a basement dweller's dream job come true, Sun won't have to pay too much for labor.
has been reading Cryptonomicon.
By what name do you wish to be mourned?
Sun to create datacenter in the land of the rising Sun.
A couple of examples come to mind.
The Government of Canada marijuana farm is located in an old copper mine in Manitoba. You can't beat the security, which is something mentioned in tfa. http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2001/08/02/marijuana_010802.html
A solar neutrino observatory is installed in an old mine in Sudbury, Ontario, Canads. It has the advantage of being impervious to almost all kinds of radiation, except of course for neutrinos. http://www.sno.phy.queensu.ca/
As I look at the other posts, I see lots of naysayers. Well there are at least a couple of cases where old mines have been used successfully for other things.
Since the computers produce a lot of heat the humidity wouldn't be much of a problem, try putting a computer in a humid garage, the computer will be just about the only thing dry in there.
I do wonder how much this thing will really save, I wouldn't be so surprised if the costs are comparable to the normal installation (remember, the normal installation costs for these things is near 0, they just need a power, network and water plug). If they'd just put the server somewhere with some other cooling source available (a lake for example?) it would probably be even cheaper.
They save a bundle in HVAC costs, but now they face the prospect of black lung disease...
Taking stuff apart since 1969 (TM)
If they name the systems in that facility the MAGI, I think it's time I move a few hundred miles inland.
I'm done with sigs. Sigs are lame.
You raise an interesting point about heat dissipation in an underground datacenter. I remember seeing something on NORAD years ago about the construction of the command center inside Cheyenne Mountain. One of the things that stuck with me was the fact that there was no dedicated heating system: they merely ducted the waste heat from their 150+ mainframes throughout the entire installation. Kept 'em all nice and toasty warm, even in a Colorado winter.