Microsofts underwater data centre
As the number of data centres continues to grow, can a climate efficient solution to energy consumption be achieved by going underwater?
As the majority of companies have started to move towards cloud based solutions in the last few years, this has resulted in an increased demand for the data centres that provide these capabilities. Many data centres rely on the core concepts of being close to the users that interact with them to improve the experiences for the users. However, a large opportunity exists to expand the functionality of these data centres to interact with a larger population. What this article aims to review is the proof of concept completed by Microsoft, to understand the impact of putting a data centre into the sea. I think you will find that the results are fascinating for what could be achieved.
Story based on the Microsoft article.
Overview
What Microsoft have shown within their article is that an underwater solution could be the key to help improve each internet users experience. As mentioned, most of the world’s population live within 120 miles of a coast, so why not try to sustainably use this solution to improve the opportunities for all data consumers. By providing real-time data connections, it could reduce the latency that is currently experienced when aiming to retrieve data from distant locations.
In order to appreciate how we arrived at the point of dropping a data centre into the ocean. We may have to take it back a few stages to understand what the ripple effects might be.
Data is the oil of the 21st Century
Has data replaced oil as the worlds most valuable resource during the 21st century? Do the large technology companies that harvest this data need to be broken up for the benefit of all? Does it make sense for all the data created on the Internet to be stored in a few centralised locations?
Each question continues to be researched more regularly and makes up a small microcosm of the challenges that face each of us as data consumers. By understanding how the data created daily is stored, we can begin to comprehend the modern-day power struggle that has emerged.
So how much data is there on the internet? Heading into the year 2020, the digital universe in bytes, had 40 times more data points than there are observable stars in the universe. With nearly 60% of the world’s population using the internet daily, this number can only continue to grow exponentially.
Having all this data is great but what insights can be gained from a data lake the size of an ocean.
A traditional computer could not perform robust data analytics on a dataset this size. Therefore, cloud computing solutions are required. With the ability to efficiently store large quantities of data in virtual memory. Analysts can start to answer many questions posed by companies. A few examples of these questions could be, a logistic company aiming to understand the most energy-efficient delivery journey, or a supermarket aiming to ensure that the most popular stock does not run out too quickly.
The data centre is at the core
The heartbeat of any cloud computing solution is the data centre that sits at the core of the operation. It ensures that data can be stored, retrieved, and analysed, in real-time. Without a fully functioning data centre, a cloud computing solution would fall over.
Currently, data centres are stored within large warehouses in remote locations, being kept at temperate temperatures to ensure efficient operations and in turn consuming lots of energy. The energy source has migrated to renewable energy in the last 10 years which has helped to reduce some of the burdens. However, more can be done to help improve the turnaround time for data processing.
Could the minimisation of human interaction, help to increase the longevity of the hardware? Microsoft appears to think so.
By completing the proof of concept of storing a data centre under the sea just off the Scottish Orkney Islands, many intriguing insights have emerged. The capsule which contained the data centre resembled less of the off the assembly line car and more of the off-road explorer.
Many of the species which make up the underwater biodiversity welcomed the capsule with open arms with minimal impact to the surrounding area. Inside the capsule, the larger proportion of nitrogen to oxygen helped to remove some of the corrosive oxygen impacts on the servers, therefore increasing the life span. Having an external monitor that switched servers that failed remotely reduced any interruptions which would have otherwise taken place within a regular land-dwelling data centre.
Overall, many great insights have been discovered with much more testing planned. Could this be the next step in the journey for all data centres?
