AHPCRC Mission
AHPCRC, The Army High Performance Computing Research Center, is a collaboration between the U.S. Army and a consortium of university and industry partners. It addresses the Army’s most difficult scientific and engineering challenges using high performance computing, in alignment with the Army Research, Development and Engineering Command’s (RDECOM’s) vision to be the world leader in rapid and innovative research, development, and engineering for the warfighter.
High performance computing (HPC) provides significant advantages in designing and characterizing complex systems involving many interacting factors. Computer modeling and simulation reduce the time and expense of designing, optimizing, and characterizing complex systems. This, in turn, enables decision-makers to prioritize design tradeoffs and to make informed acquisition decisions. Computer models can stand in for real-world trial and error where such testing would be costly or dangerous.
Realistic computer simulations and models enable a sophisticated and intentional approach to the design, characterization, and optimization of complex systems. Many combinations of parameters and variables can be tested, leading to solutions that might not have been foreseen by the researcher. As applied science and engineering problems become more complex, computing capabilities must keep up with the demand. Existing codes must be adapted to run on parallel computing systems, toolkits and libraries must be operable on multiple platforms, and programs must be written so that they can be easily transferred to newer systems as they arise. Software must be comprehensible and applicable to the intended users.
Although HPC modeling, simulation, and mathematical calculations are well established as tools for fostering scientific discovery, significant unrealized potential exists for innovating technology and reducing design-cycle times. HPC architectures vary greatly, and the development of parallelized software that functions efficiently on a variety of platforms (including those that don’t yet exist) is still in the early stages. AHPCRC seeks to develop this potential as a means of addressing the real-world needs of today’s warfighter: strong, lightweight protective gear; agile unmanned aerial surveillance vehicles; early-warning systems for biowarfare agents; better medical treatments; lightweight vehicle and ammunition components; efficient wireless network designs; and rapid, secure data aggregation and dissemination.
AHPCRC researchers perform their work using computational resources from their host universities and from the U.S. Department of Defense High Performance Computing Modernization Program (HPCMP).
In addition, AHPCRC fosters the education of the next generation of scientists and engineers—including those from racially and economically disadvantaged backgrounds—in the fundamental theories and best practices of simulation-based engineering sciences and high performance computing.