(AGENPARL) – ven 21 giugno 2024 A weekly compendium of media reports on science and technology achievements
at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Though the Laboratory reviews
items for overall accuracy, the reporting organizations are responsible for
the content in the links below.
….. LLNL Report, June 21, 2024
Many supercomputers such as LLNL’s Sierra are running much longer that the
typical lifespan. (Photo: Randy Wong/LLNL)
… It’s alive
https://www.hpcwire.com/2024/06/12/labs-keep-supercomputers-alive-for-ten-years-as-vendors-pull-support-early/
Laboratories are running supercomputers for much longer, beyond the typical
lifespan, as vendors prematurely deprecate the hardware and stop providing
support. A typical supercomputer lifecycle is about five to six years.
However, Japan-based RIKEN is planning to run its existing Fugaku for 10
years, and Lawrence Livermore National Lab (LLNL) has some systems running
for 7-10 years in some cases.
“We plan on extending the lifetime of our machines,” said Satoshi
Matsuoka, director at Japan’s RIKEN Center for Computational Science,
during a panel discussion on sustainability of supercomputing at ISC 2024.
LLNL plans for a five-year lifespan for systems, as hardware maintenance
typically becomes cost-prohibitive beyond that point. “We run systems …
in practice, it’s about 7 to 8 years. We’ve run several systems for 10
years,” said Bronis de Supinski, chief technology officer at LLNL.
The decision to retire supercomputers largely depends on the energy
efficiency and power-performance benefits of newer systems.
Read More
https://www.hpcwire.com/2024/06/12/labs-keep-supercomputers-alive-for-ten-years-as-vendors-pull-support-early/
LLNL researchers and collaborators observed a phase transition in magnesium
oxide that is believed to reside in the interiors of Super-Earths, planets
with masses and radii larger than Earth but smaller than ice giants like
Neptune. (Image: Adobe Stock)
… A dynamic transition in exoplanets
https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Magnesium_oxide_transition_insights_for_super_Earth_exoplanets_revealed_999.html
Researchers from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Johns Hopkins
University have discovered new information about the interiors of super-Earth
exoplanets. The study focuses on magnesium oxide (MgO), a key component of
Earth’s lower mantle, which is believed to play a similar role in the mantles
of large rocky exoplanets. MgO, known for its rock salt (B1) crystal
structure, undergoes significant changes under extreme conditions, which has
long intrigued scientists.
Super-Earths, which have masses and radii larger than Earth but smaller than
Neptune, are thought to have compositions similar to terrestrial planets in
our solar system. Under the extreme pressures and temperatures within their
mantles, MgO is expected to transform from its B1 structure to a cesium
chloride (B2) structure. This transformation greatly affects MgO’s
properties, including a decrease in viscosity, impacting the planet’s
internal dynamics.
To determine the pressure at which this transition happens, the LLNL team and
collaborators developed a new experimental platform. This combines
laser-shock compression with simultaneous measurements of pressure, crystal
structure, temperature, microstructural texture and density.
Read More
https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Magnesium_oxide_transition_insights_for_super_Earth_exoplanets_revealed_999.html
Wei Li and Xavier Mayali used the NanoSims to measure nitrogen incorporation
and exchange at single cell resolution of harmful algal blooms from Lake
Erie. (Photo: Blaise Dorous/LLNL)**
… Understanding Lake Erie’s algal threats

Study examines algal blooms in Lake Erie

A new study led by Lawrence Livermore scientists and University of Toledo
professors and students aims to better understand the harmful algal blooms in
Lake Erie. Algal blooms are a persistent issue for the lake, posing risks to
the health of both the local ecosystem and those who use the lake for
recreation.
Dragan Isailovic, a chemistry and biochemistry professor at the University of
Toledo, explained that their collaboration with Lawrence Livermore allows
them to focus on one specific type of bacteria. “We are investigating how
the microbiome, including other types of bacteria, influences the growth of
microcystic aeruginosa,” Isaialovic said.
The toxins emitted during these algal blooms can lead to serious consequences
for aquatic life and humans. Exposure to microcystins can result in cell
death, animal death, and even human death.
The team investigated the role of the microbiome in the production of
nitrogen that supports Cyanobacteria growth. Much of this nitrogen comes from
inorganic sources, notably from fertilizers.
By exploring these interactions further, the researchers hope to develop
better strategies to prevent the formation of harmful algal blooms in the
future.
Read More https://www.devx.com/news/study-examines-algal-blooms-in-lake-erie/
A depiction of the collision of two neutrons simulated on a quantum chip at
the Advanced Quantum Testbed. (Image: Sofia Quaglioni/LLNL)
… Quantum computing nuclear reaction rates
https://www.exchangemonitor.com/llnl-uses-quantum-computing-to-collect-data-for-stockpile-stewardship/
Scientists from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory developed an algorithm
to simulate nuclear reaction rates, which are tough to make in a lab, to
collect data to maintain the nuclear weapons stockpile.
The hybrid computing scheme “successfully” simulated the scattering of
two neutrons, which can be used to compute nuclear reaction rates, according
to a press release by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). 
Researchers hope that developing this method could support NNSA in collecting
data, alongside subcritical experiments, to ensure the reliability of the
U.S.’s warheads without nuclear weapons testing. Since the Comprehensive
Test Ban Treaty of 1992, NNSA has performed 33 subcritical experiments in
Nevada.
Read More
https://www.exchangemonitor.com/llnl-uses-quantum-computing-to-collect-data-for-stockpile-stewardship/
In the Arctic Ocean, sea ice reached its minimum extent of 1.44 million
square miles (3.74 million square kilometers) on Sept. 15, 2020 – the second
lowest extent since modern record-keeping began. (Image: NASA’s Scientific
Visualization Studio)
… A force of nature
https://www.yourweather.co.uk/news/trending/scientists-find-that-natural-climate-variability-affects-global-and-arctic-warming.html
When comparing model simulations of recent Earth warming with real-world
observations, differences can arise due to several factors, including model
errors in the simulated response to rising greenhouse gases and natural
fluctuations within the climate system.
In an effort to quantify the role of natural fluctuations in differences
between models and observations, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
scientist Stephen Po-Chedley and his collaborators found unique patterns of
temperature trends associated with natural climate variability for the period
1980–2022. //
“The relative role of different drivers of model-observation discrepancies
in the warming pattern has important implications for our understanding of
climate sensitivity as well as regional climate changes,” said Po-Chedley,
co-author of the study. “This work shows that natural variations in
Earth’s climate likely contribute to key differences in the pattern of
simulated
Read More
https://www.yourweather.co.uk/news/trending/scientists-find-that-natural-climate-variability-affects-global-and-arctic-warming.html
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