Press Release

SGI InfiniteStorage Technology Drives All-digital Performance Evaluation and Design of Spacecraft and Missile Defense Systems at Vandenberg Air Force Base

New SGI High-Performance SAN Cuts 4K Image Download Times from 6-8 Hours to 20 Minutes

SAN ANTONIO, TX. GEOINT 2007, Booth 475 (October 24, 2007) — To completely overhaul a film and video lab that had been working in much the same fashion for 50 years, the 30th Space Communications Squadron at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) has installed storage technology from SGI (NASDAQ: SGIC) to create an all-digital production environment. Similar to SGI® installations in Hollywood but handling data streams with much higher frame rates, the high-performance SGI® InfiniteStorage SAN enables real-time media production and postproduction of multiple 4K data streams. The SGI SAN system, installed in late July 2007, is used to monitor, test and evaluate the performance and engineering design of a number of spacecraft and missile programs for the United States Air Force, a variety of U.S. government agencies including NASA and the National Weather Service, and a growing number of commercial interests.

A mix of 70mm, 35mm and 16mm film cameras, and SD and HD video cameras capture space flights originating from Vandenberg that carry weather satellites and other payloads into polar orbit. The SGI SAN is used for testing and refining the rocket-launched X-37 aerospace-plane, monitoring base launches of Minuteman III missiles, and recording and evaluating test intercept vehicles to disable incoming ballistic missiles. VAFB uses from six to 12 cameras for a small evaluation and from 200 to 300 cameras for worst-case scenario testing.

The Data Science Lab at VAFB was tasked with selecting a complete high-performance SAN that would ingest and transcode feeds from the multiple cameras placed throughout the range. The SAN would also seamlessly allow multiple operating environments to function simultaneously, enabling collaboration and utilization of different types of media tools. The system had to be easily expandable to accommodate projected growth in dataset sizes for all of VAFB's tasks, as well as anticipated growth in commercial suborbital flight testing and commercial satellite launch. When considering systems for the digital transition, a team from VAFB visited NASA's Kennedy Space Center where the Ice and Debris Team relies on a similar SGI all-digital infrastructure to review shuttle launches.

VAFB's vision is to harness the power of contemporary computer environments to do visual computing with the emphasis on space anomaly detection. Multimedia Specialist Stan Bellew, who serves as the Program Manager for the Range Digital Acquisition and Processing System (RDAPS) at the Data Science Lab, VAFB, looked for an infrastructure that would not only enable the lab to work today but be dynamic enough to work well into the future. With the onset of high-speed digital cameras and larger resolutions, and the demand for greater fidelity of imagery by VAFB's customers, Bellew estimates the amount of data growth at 50 and 100TB of data per evaluation, and 100TB, on average, for each space lift launch alone. The SGI SAN was purchased for its expansion capability, first from a 2K to 4K environment, and beyond to 8K or even 12K. The lofty goal is to see rivets 50 miles away, according to Bellew.

To process this vast amount of data, VAFB chose an SGI InfiniteStorage SAN with real-time SGI® InfiniteStorage CXFS™ shared filesystem and high-speed NAS for a shared, open-system infrastructure. VAFB is leveraging many visual effects tools normally found in Hollywood running Linux, as well as scientific tools developed by other agencies, such as NASA and the U.S. Air Force, that run Windows®, Windows 64® and Linux® all on the same workstation.

VAFB receives cost-savings benefits because SGI allows the connection of all major environments through CXFS, thus limiting the amount of additional hardware or software that needs to be purchased. Most importantly, the data exchange is effortless, seamless, and very fast. In the past, it would take the lab between 6 to 8 hours to download data from one camera system and do some processing. Now Bellew and his colleagues can work within a large single environment doing anomaly analysis, motion tracking and stabilization of shots and generate a product in less than half an hour.

Through Federal Edge, a strategic SGI channel partner, and SGI Professional Services, VAFB purchased the SGI SAN as well as five SGI® Altix® server render nodes.

"To achieve the highest fidelity images and extremely fast performance for terabytes of data in 4K streams, Vandenberg AFB looked to their fellow space pioneers at NASA and to Hollywood, and determined that SGI was the right choice for their high-speed data management, analysis, and storage needs," said Raj Das, vice president of storage, SGI. "Advances in compute power and applications from the military have historically trickled down into Hollywood, and now the cycle has reversed. The transition to an all-digital environment is underway at government and military agencies and they are finding the high performance and storage capabilities they need with SGI systems."

SGI - Innovation for Results™
SGI (NASDAQ: SGIC), is a leader in high-performance computing. SGI delivers a complete range of high-performance server and storage solutions along with industry-leading professional services and support that enable its customers to overcome the challenges of complex data-intensive workflows and accelerate breakthrough discoveries, innovation and information transformation. SGI solutions help customers solve their computing challenges whether it's enhancing the quality of life through drug research, designing and manufacturing safer and more efficient cars and airplanes, studying global climate change, providing technologies for homeland security and defense, or helping enterprises manage large data. With offices worldwide, the company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, Calif., and can be found on the Web at www.sgi.com.

© 2007 SGI. All rights reserved. SGI, Altix, the SGI cube and the SGI logo are registered trademarks, and CXFS is a trademark of SGI in the United States and/or other countries worldwide. Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in several countries. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.