Top500org

Top500.org is the official website of the Top500 project, which maintains the Top500 list of the world’s most powerful high-performance computing (HPC) systems. The project provides a public benchmark and data resource used to track trends in HPC architecture, performance, and scale. It serves researchers, vendors, and users who rely on a transparent, widely cited ranking of supercomputers.

Ranking basis and data details: The rankings are based on the High-Performance LINPACK (HPL) benchmark. Each system’s performance is reported as Rmax (the measured performance in floating-point operations per second) and Rpeak (the theoretical peak). The list ranks systems by Rmax and provides extensive configuration information, including processor type, accelerators (such as GPUs), interconnect, memory, software environment, location, and vendor. Data are submitted by system administrators and vendors and are reviewed by the Top500 team before publication.

Updates and distribution: The Top500 list is updated twice a year, with new rankings released in June and November. Each release is accompanied by a public press briefing and a downloadable dataset detailing the entries and their characteristics.

Origins and governance: The project began in the early 1990s at the University of Mannheim, initiated by researchers such as Erich Strohmaier, Hans Meuer, and Horst Simon. Over time, it has grown into a global effort involving multiple institutions and individuals who contribute to data collection, validation, and publication.

Impact and context: The Top500 list is widely cited as a barometer of HPC progress and vendor competitiveness. It is commonly referenced alongside other benchmarking efforts, such as the Green500 for energy efficiency, to provide a broader picture of supercomputing development.