STORM: a Multibus system for climate modelling

The authors consider the design of a multiprocessor, called STORM, for efficient execution of large global climate modeling programs. They begin by discussing the limitations of current shared and distributed memory multiprocessors and show that a shared memory machine with only partial processor/memory interconnection can provide a scalable platform for climate model programs. A detailed analysis is presented of some memory traces taken from CSIRO 4, a real model developed and used by the CSIRO Division of Atmospheric Research in Australia. A prototype of STORM built from Sun SparcStations is described.<
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