HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTING FOR THE STUDY OF EARTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE MATERIALS USING SYNCHROTRON X-RAY COMPUTED MICROTOMOGRAPHY

Synchrotron x-ray computed microtomography (CMT) is a non-destructive method for examination of rock, soil, and other types of samples studied in the earth and environmental sciences. The high x-ray intensities of the synchrotron source make possible the acquisition of tomographic volumes at a high rate that requires the application of high-performance computing techniques for data reconstruction to produce the three-dimensional volumes, for their visualization, and for data analysis. These problems are exacerbated by the need to share information between collaborators at widely separated locations over both local and tide-area networks. A summary of the CMT technique and examples of applications are given here together with a discussion of the applications of high-performance computing methods to improve the experimental techniques and analysis of the data