WesternGeco installs 512 processor IBM Linux clusterHouston 25 May 2001 WesternGeco a seismic acquisition, processing, and reservoir imaging firm has selected an IBM Linux supercomputer to substantially increase its ability to assist oil companies in their search for new oil reserves hidden deep beneath the earth's surface. The supercomputer will power WesternGeco's seismic imaging system and will be comprised of a cluster of 256 IBM eServer systems, all running Linux. The cluster at WesternGeco is comprised of 256 eServer xSeries 330 systems, each powered by two 933 MHz Intel Pentium III processors.
With the high cost of oil exploration, particularly the drilling effort, dry
holes are not an option. That is why more companies are turning to sophisticated
methods of seismic imaging that allow scientists to create detailed 3D maps of
hidden oil and gas reservoirs before drilling starts.
WesternGeco is not alone in its use of seismic imaging. As evidence of the
technology's growing popularity, in 1989 only five percent of wells drilled in
the Gulf of Mexico were based on seismic imaging. By 1996, that figure swelled
to nearly 80 percent. Today, seismic imaging precedes virtually all drilling
expeditions.
xSeries-based Linux clusters are scalable from 4 to 1024 processors and
can be fully adapted to meet the high performance needs of the petroleum market.
Linked by a fast network, the clusters can be easily managed from a single point
of control and can act as either a single machine or a multiple node system. The
cluster at WesternGeco is comprised of 256 eServer xSeries 330 systems, each
powered by two 933 MHz Intel Pentium III processors.
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