Hyperion: the new supercomputer from the Basque Country.

• This morning, Jokin Bildarratz visited the new Hyperion supercomputer at the Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC).
• Hyperion triples the power of its predecessor with more than 14,000 cores and 150 TB of RAM, serving the entire research community in the Basque Country.
• The Regional Minister met with researchers who have been awarded ERC recognition and funding, the most prestigious research grant in Europe.

This morning, the Regional Minister for Education, Jokin Bildarratz, visited the Hyperion supercomputer at the Supercomputing Centre of the Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), accompanied by the Deputy Regional Minister for Universities and Research, Adolfo Morais, and the President of the DIPC, Pedro Miguel Etxenike. Following its expansion, Hyperion has become the third most powerful supercomputer in Spain and now provides services to researchers within the Basque Science, Technology and Innovation Network. The user network comprises the nine Basic Research and Excellence Centres (BERC according to its initials in Spanish), Basque Country universities, as well as Cooperative Research Centres such as CIC nanoGUNE or CIC biomaGUNE, health research centres such as Biogipuzkoa, and technology centres such as Tecnalia.

Since 2017, the Department for Education has invested €5,925,000 in acquiring and improving equipment for supercomputing. The cost for constructing and commissioning Hyperion is 2.8 million.

Hyperion is currently used in various projects, including simulations of galaxy formation, material behaviour, quantum technology development, artificial intelligence, and computational chemistry. Supercomputers are designed to assist research staff by breaking down complex problems into smaller, more manageable ones. The final solution is obtained by combining the results of each of these, resulting in a shorter processing time.

According to Txomin Romero, director of the Supercomputing Centre, Hyperion boasts over 14,000 cores and 150 TB of RAM, making it three times more powerful than its predecessor, the Atlas supercomputer. It serves over 500 scientists in our ecosystem.

The construction of Hyperion is part of the Basque Government's Department for Education's overall strategy to provide the scientific community with the necessary tools and infrastructure to carry out their work. Thanks to the commitment, similar to the work done by Hyperion at the DIPC, BERC Biofisika Bizkaia currently houses the most advanced high-resolution electronic cryo-microscope model available, and BCBL has installed innovative magnetoencephalography equipment to record cortical activity.

IKUR strategy

Hyperion aligns with the generation of new knowledge through the four strategic areas identified in the IKUR Strategy: Neurosciences, Quantum Technologies, Neutrionics (neutron and neutrino physics), Supercomputing, Artificial Intelligence, as well as in other significant areas of research within the Basque research community such as Astrophysics, Cosmology, Climate Science, and Materials Science with advanced properties.

ERC European Recognitions

During the visit, Regional Minister Bildarratz attended a meeting with Basque Country researchers who have received an ERC Grant from the European Commission. Hyperion and other scientific infrastructures enable the scientific network to enhance its international recognition. This is evidenced by the growing number of research projects that currently hold the European recognition. Currently, the Basque Country has a total of 28 active ERC grants, including ten ERC Starting Grants, ten ERC Consolidator Grants, six Advanced Grants, and two ERC Synergy Grants.*

These 28 grants represent over 61 million euros of additional European funding invested in research in the Basque Country. The funds will be used for recruiting researchers and acquiring state-of-the-art scientific equipment.

ERC European Research Council grants are a funding programme of the European Union that promotes scientific excellence and frontier research. They are targeted at researchers at various stages of their careers, ranging from emerging talent to seasoned scientists. The primary aim of ERC grants is to promote innovation, creativity, and the exploration of novel ideas across various scientific disciplines.

• *ERC Starting Grant: designed for early-career research staff (2-7 years after PhD) who show exceptional potential in their respective fields.
• ERC Consolidator Grant: directed at researchers who have been established for 7 to 12 years after completing their postdoctoral studies. The aim is to support the consolidation of research teams and innovative projects.
• ERC Advanced Grant: intended for leaders in their respective fields of research, who possess an outstanding track record and have more than 12 years of postdoctoral experience. The aim is to support innovative and ambitious research projects.
• ERC Synergy Grant: designed for groups of researchers who aim to collaboratively tackle complex and ambitious research questions that require the expertise of multiple outstanding researchers.