We Hear That Google Is Working On A Secret Project Near Treasure Island...
Something big and mysterious is rising from a floating barge at the end of Treasure Island, a former Navy base in the middle of San Francisco Bay. And Google's fingerprints are all over it.
By Sadho Ram — 26 Oct 2013, 02:33 PM — Updated almost 11 years ago
This large structure, which is being built by Google, could be a floating data center.
It's unclear what's inside the structure, which stands about four stories high and was made with a series of modern cargo containers. The same goes for when it will be unveiled, but the big tease has already begun. Locals refer to it as the secret project.
cnet.com
It is located on a barge just off Treasure Island, between San Francisco and Oakland.
Image via cbsistatic.comCnet speculates that inside these containers, Google is building a prototype for a floating data center—which makes a lot of sense, because using sea water to cool data centers could potentially save the company a bucket of money.
gizmodo.com
Whether the structure is in fact a floating data center is hard to say for sure, of course, since Google's not talking. But Google, understandably, has a history of putting data centers in places with cheap cooling, as well as undertaking odd and unexpected projects like trying to bring Internet access to developing nations via balloons and blimps.
qz.com
A floating data center offers several possible advantages over land-based counterparts.
For one thing, it's theoretically possible to power it by generating electricity from wave motion—about as clean a source of energy as you can imagine.
androidcommunity.comCold sea water also holds potential as a coolant, an important factor given that data centers generate a lot of heat.
gizmodo.com
Although salt water can also easily corrode metal and delicate equipment, so it's not necessarily ideal, either.
siliconbeat.com
It's also not immediately clear how data would move on and off a data-center barge. Satellite connections are likely far too slow (not to mention low bandwidth) to serve data center needs.
dailyme.com
Google patented a "water-based data center" in 2009, describing it this way:
Google has patented all kinds of far-out ideas—but this one appears to be coming to fruition.
Image via wordpress.comA system includes a floating platform-mounted computer data center comprising a plurality of computing units, a sea-based electrical generator in electrical connection with the plurality of computing units, and one or more sea-water cooling units for providing cooling to the plurality of computing units.
readwrite.com
Google’s original patent for a floating data center may be the prototype for the design currently floating in San Francisco bay.
Image via wordpress.comAll you need to know about the Treasure Island..
Treasure Island is an artificial island in the San Francisco Bay between San Francisco and Oakland, and an emerging neighborhood of San Francisco.
The island serves as one of the popular tourist destinations and is a favorite scenic view of locals. A popular location for photographers, Treasure Island also serves as a popular spot to watch the sunset from the Magic Carpet Great Lawn as named during the 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition.
Now, with all this talk about treasure island and secret project, the only man that is missing is captain Jack Sparrow..
...and just in case, you might be wondering what is a 'barge'? Here:
A Barge is a long flat-bottomed boat for carrying freight on canals and rivers, either under its own power or towed by another.
google.co.in