Performance benchmarks for a next generation numerical dynamo model

Matsui, H. et al. (2016) Performance benchmarks for a next generation numerical dynamo model. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 17(5), pp. 1586-1607. (doi: 10.1002/2015GC006159)

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Abstract

Numerical simulations of the geodynamo have successfully represented many observable characteristics of the geomagnetic field, yielding insight into the fundamental processes that generate magnetic fields in the Earth's core. Because of limited spatial resolution, however, the diffusivities in numerical dynamo models are much larger than those in the Earth's core, and consequently, questions remain about how realistic these models are. The typical strategy used to address this issue has been to continue to increase the resolution of these quasi-laminar models with increasing computational resources, thus pushing them toward more realistic parameter regimes. We assess which methods are most promising for the next generation of supercomputers, which will offer access to O(106) processor cores for large problems. Here we report performance and accuracy benchmarks from 15 dynamo codes that employ a range of numerical and parallelization methods. Computational performance is assessed on the basis of weak and strong scaling behavior up to 16,384 processor cores. Extrapolations of our weak scaling results indicate that dynamo codes that employ two- or three-dimensional domain decompositions can perform efficiently on up to ∼106 processor cores, paving the way for more realistic simulations in the next model generation.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Simitev, Professor Radostin and Silva, Dr Luis
Authors: Matsui, H., Heien, E., Aubert, J., Aurnou, J. M., Avery, M., Brown, B., Buffett, B. A., Busse, F., Christensen, U. R., Davies, C. J., Featherstone, N., Gastine, T., Glatzmaier, G. A., Gubbins, D., Guermond, J.-L., Hayashi, Y.-Y., Hollerbach, R., Hwang, L. J., Jackson, A., Jones, C. A., Jiang, W., Kellogg, L. H., Kuang, W., Landeau, M., Marti, P. H., Olson, P., Ribeiro, A., Sasaki, Y., Schaeffer, N., Simitev, R. D., Sheyko, A., Silva, L., Stanley, S., Takahashi, F., Takehiro, S.-i., Wicht, J., and Willis, A. P.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Mathematics and Statistics > Mathematics
Journal Name:Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems
Publisher:American Geophysical Union
ISSN:1525-2027
ISSN (Online):1525-2027
Published Online:06 May 2016
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2016 American Geophysical Union
First Published:First published in Geochemistry Geophysics Geosystems 17(5): 1586-1607
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher.

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
570591Two-layer thermo-compositional dynamo models of the geomagnetic field.Radostin SimitevLeverhulme Trust (LEVERHULME)RPG-2012-600M&S - MATHEMATICS