DoD supercomputer network gets massive speed hike

A Department of Defense supercomputer network is being upgraded to speeds as high as 40 gigabits a second.

CenturyLink and LGS Innovations will enhance the five supercomputing sites that comprise the Defense Research and Engineering Network (DREN), according to a CenturyLink news release. Current DREN speeds range from 50 megabits to 40 gigabits per second.

The Navy DoD Supercomputing Resource Center at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi, which is used for rocket engine research, will be the first site to be upgraded.

CenturyLink had been awarded DREN III, a 10-year indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract worth up to $750 million, by DISA's Defense Information Technology Contracting Organization in December 2012. LGS is working as a subcontractor on the project.