Europe's leading science has been done in Catalonia for two decades.

BarcelonaTwo decades of science and knowledge serving the public have positioned Catalonia as one of the most innovative regions in Europe. This is the legacy of the Barcelona Supercomputing Center - National Supercomputing Center (BSC-CNS) since its inception 20 years ago with the installation of the first MareNostrum supercomputer. During this time, the center has become a hub for talent, research projects, and economic growth in the Catalan capital, while simultaneously increasing its computing capacity with the installation of increasingly powerful supercomputers, culminating in MareNostrum 5. The arrival of a new quantum computer, one of the first of European production, and from one of the first European artificial intelligence (AI) factoriesAnd the MareNostrum 6 on the horizon marks the future of the institution, which is clear that it wants to continue advancing true to its legacy.

"Science must be relevant above all else. If it doesn't solve societal problems, it's not worth researching," argued the director of the BSC, Mateo Valero, this Wednesday during the center's 20th anniversary celebration. Valero reviewed the center's trajectory since its founding in 2005 and also that of the European Center for Parallelism in Barcelona (CEPBA), the first research center in Spain dedicated to parallel computers, which they launched 40 years ago and which has been the "seed" of more than 1,400 projects. Valero, however, asserted that the essence remains the same as when they launched CEPBA: "A meeting point between science and society, a center that wants to continue leading European technological development to address the great challenges of our time."

The first MareNostrum, installed in a former chapel on the campus of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia (UPC), was the most powerful computer in Europe and the fourth most powerful in the world, placing Spain at the forefront of high-performance computing. The goal was—and remains today with MareNostrum 5, which is among the 10 most powerful supercomputers in the world—to tackle enormously complex problems requiring numerical calculations that cannot be performed with any other tool. For example, finding solutions to the climate crisis, combating incurable diseases, or discovering new, virtually infinite sources of energy, among many other lines of research currently being pursued by the BSC.

Pioneers in artificial intelligence

During the commemoration ceremony, the mayor of Barcelona, ​​Jaume Collboni, proudly stated that the city is home to the institution, wishing it another 20 years of service to science and the public. Meanwhile, the Minister of Research and Universities, Núria Montserrat, affirmed that in these two decades the center has become a true "center." The BSC chapel now houses the Quantum Spain digital quantum computer, the first in Spain developed with 100% European technology, and is preparing to house a second analog quantum system from the European quantum computing network. Both are part of MareNostrum Ona, the quantum system connected to MareNostrum 5. Furthermore, the chapel will host the expansion of MareNostrum 5 next year, which will increase its processing capacity by almost 50% and "place Barcelona, ​​Catalonia, and Spain at the forefront" of the institution.