Technology companies like Google are always trying to find new
ways to make their data centers consume less energy. It cuts
down on one of their biggest costs, and it helps them maintain
their cleantech image. Data centers get very hot, and need to be
cooled. But Google’s data center in Belgium gets all the cooling
it needs from two non-electrical sources: non-municipal water
brought in from nearby canals, and the surrounding air.
Belgium’s cool climate means that the air outside is usually
cold enough to naturally cool the hot computing parts inside,
except for about seven days per year, on average. So here’s the
cool part (pun somewhat intended) – when it gets too hot
outside, Google will automatically divert all processing away
from that data center, to one of their many other data centers
around the world. Just one potential green benefit of cloud
computing. But that’s another post… |< Prev||Next >|