The UNM Center for Advanced Research Computing (CARC) supports high-performance and data-intensive research across the UNM community. Our systems are designed to serve a wide range of disciplines, from traditional scientific computing to advanced data analytics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning.

CARC currently operates several high-performance computing clusters:

Easley Cluster
65 compute nodes with 4,160 total CPU cores and 23.3 TB of RAM. Easley includes 36 NVIDIA L40s GPUs for AI and machine learning workloads, along with 8 NVIDIA H100 GPUs for double-precision computing. The system is connected through an NVIDIA NDR 800 Gbps InfiniBand core network for high-speed communication between nodes.

Hopper Cluster
61 compute nodes with 2,176 CPU cores and 37 NVIDIA A100 GPUs. Hopper is connected through an NVIDIA HDR 400 Gbps InfiniBand network and supports both general and GPU-accelerated workloads.

Xena Cluster
32 compute nodes with 720 CPU cores and NVIDIA K40 GPUs, connected through a 56 Gbps InfiniBand network. Xena also provides 70 TB of local scratch storage for active workloads.

Together, these systems support a broad ecosystem of research software, including scientific computing tools, machine learning frameworks such as TensorFlow and PyTorch, data analytics platforms, and interactive environments like Jupyter, R, and Parallel Matlab.

Data Storage and Virtual Infrastructure

CARC provides multiple tiers of high-performance storage to support both active research workflows and long-term data management.

Available storage resources include:

• 720 TB of all-flash IBM Scale (GPFS) scratch storage
• 2 PB of BeeGFS working scratch storage
• 2.4 PB of NetApp enterprise storage

Enterprise storage includes automated snapshots taken hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly, with retention for up to four months to support user-directed data recovery.

In partnership with UNM Libraries, CARC also supports a virtual machine infrastructure that enables custom research applications, secure data hosting, and flexible computing environments.

Physical Infrastructure

All CARC systems are housed in a dedicated 1,200 square-foot research data center built to support high-performance and data-intensive computing.

The facility includes 270 kVa of UPS capacity and 990 tons of dedicated cooling across three Liebert AC systems, providing resilience during transient power events and allowing for controlled shutdown during extended outages.

Systems are connected to campus through multiple 10 Gbps links, including a dedicated 10 Gbps connection to UNM’s Science DMZ research network. External connectivity includes 100 Gbps connections to ESNet and the Western Regional Network through the Albuquerque Gigapop.

Physical access to the machine room is restricted and managed through UNM’s Electronic Network Access Control system.