Supercomputer unveiled in Edinburgh

The most advanced supercomputing facility in the UK has been opened in Edinburgh.

Research which could have taken years will be brought forward much more quickly.

Alistair Darling

UK chancellor

Capable of 63 million calculations a second, the computer - known as High-End Computing Terascale Resources (Hector) - will be based at the University of Edinburgh's Advanced Computing Facility (ACF) and run for six years.

Hector will enable UK-based scientists to engage in "increasingly complex computer simulations" across several disciplines, such as the development of new medical treatments.

The device will also be able to forecast the impact of climate change and fluctuations in ocean currents, as well as projecting the spread of epidemic.

The £113 million computer was unveiled by Chancellor Alistair Darling who praised the development and said the government plans to spend £6 billion supporting science in the UK by 2010.

He commented: "We've got a world-wide reputation for excellence in scientific research and having a computer that is this powerful will mean that research which could have taken years will be brought forward much more quickly.