Case Study: ASTRON advances radio astronomy data storage and processing with SURF Grid infrastructure

ASTRON - Customer Case Study

ASTRON, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy, needed a solution for the massive long-term data storage and analysis requirements of its innovative LOFAR telescope. The telescope's grid-infrastructure computer systems could not handle the long-term storage of the vast amounts of radio astronomy data it collected. To address this challenge, ASTRON turned to vendor SURF for its specialized Grid infrastructure services.

The solution implemented by SURF involved providing the large-scale storage and data processing capabilities ASTRON required. Compressed LOFAR data is transferred via a fiber optic network to SURF, where it is stored on disks and tapes. This partnership provides astronomers with the necessary infrastructure to manage exascale data, serving as a critical learning platform for future international projects like the SKA telescope.

ASTRON

Hanno Holties

System Engineer