Tech Roundup: Brazil’s supercomputer under threat

This week’s topics: Supercomputer shutdown could leave Brazil without weather data. Central Bank postpones the second phase of open banking. Brazil’s booming video game sector.  

Supercomputer shutdown could cause weather data blackout in Brazil

After the Jair Bolsonaro administration removed the monitoring of forest fires from the purview of the National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) — a strictly technical agency operating under the Science and Technology Ministry — the institute is set for another blow. In August, the country could see a blackout of weather data caused by the potential shutdown of Inpe’s Tupã supercomputer, due to a lack of funds.

Super. Tupã has been responsible for the processing and analysis of short and long-term meteorological data for at least a decade and it is of extreme importance for national decisions on water, energy, and food security. 

• With its shutdown, long-term climate forecasts will also be affected.

Why it matters. Brazil has just had its driest summer in 91 years and faces a crippling water crisis, which could also result in an energy crisis.

Tupã. Named after the god of thunder of indigenous Tupi-Guarani mythology, the supercomputer was bought for USD 23 million in 2010. For years, it has been the leading supercomputer in the country and the 29th-fastest in the world. 

• But Tupã requires maintenance, and several replacement parts are no longer manufactured, imposing significant costs. On average, Inpe spends BRL 6 million (USD 1.2 million) on the supercomputer’s power and upkeep.
• Tupã has been facing funding cutbacks since 2014.
• For Vivaldo José Breternitz, professor at the Faculty of Computer Science at Mackenzie University, activities in recent months are moving toward replacing the computer with more modern but less powerful equipment. “Replacing Tupã with another machine of a compatible size depends on the money available, and we know that this involves...