The Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS) is Spain’s national supercomputing facility and a leading research institution in Europe. Established in 2005, it is most famous for housing the MareNostrum supercomputer.

A Unique Setting: High-Tech in a Chapel

One of the BSC’s most striking features is its location. The supercomputer is housed inside the Torre Girona, a 19th-century de-consecrated chapel on the Campus Nord of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC). Seeing the glowing glass box of MareNostrum inside the classic stone arches of the chapel makes it one of the most beautiful data centers in the world.

MareNostrum 5

The latest iteration, MareNostrum 5, is among the most powerful supercomputers globally. It is designed to support a wide range of scientific fields, with a specific focus on boosting Artificial Intelligence (AI) and European chip technology.

With a team of over 1,300 experts, the center focuses on:

• Life Sciences: Personalizing medicine and simulating drug interactions.
• Earth Sciences: Modeling climate change and predicting air quality.
• Computer Sciences: Designing the next generation of European processors.
• Engineering: Simulating complex fluid dynamics for aircraft or city infrastructure.