Power Monitoring and Control for Large Scale projects: SKA, a case study

TL;DR

This paper discusses innovative power monitoring and control strategies for large-scale radio astronomy projects like the SKA, emphasizing green ICT practices to ensure power efficiency and sustainability.

Contribution

It introduces novel approaches for power management and monitoring tailored to large, distributed radio astronomy infrastructures, focusing on sustainability and efficiency.

Findings

Enhanced power monitoring techniques for large-scale infrastructure

Strategies for reducing electricity costs and improving power efficiency

Frameworks for sustainable power management in radio astronomy projects

Abstract

Large sensor-based science infrastructures for radio astronomy like the SKA will be among the most intensive data-driven projects in the world, facing very high demanding computation, storage, management, and above all power demands. The geographically wide distribution of the SKA and and its associated processing requirements in the form of tailored High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities, require a Greener approach towards the Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) adopted for the data processing to enable operational compliance to potentially strict power budgets. Addressing the reduction of electricity costs, improve system power monitoring and the generation and management of electricity at system level is paramount to avoid future inefficiencies and higher costs and enable fulfillments of Key Science Cases. Here we outline major characteristics and innovation approaches to address power efficiency and long-term power sustainability for radio astronomy projects, focusing on Green ICT for science and Smart power monitoring and control.