Extreme temperatures have already caused instability at Google and Oracle’s data centers in London.
Can episodes of this kind be repeated and what measures are companies taking to protect
themselves?
The warnings are not new. The Earth is getting hotter and, over the next 20 years, it is expected to
continue to warm, with the possibility of exceeding the predicted 1.5 degrees of increase, according
to a United Nations report last year.
As notícias sobre ondas de calor e fenómenos climáticos extremos sucedem-se até este ponto do ano.
Em julho, por exemplo, o verão ainda ia a meio e já eram registados recordes de temperaturas, em
alguns casos surpreendendo países menos habituados a lidar com números tão altos nos termómetros.
Em Inglaterra, por exemplo, foram atingidos os 40,2 graus, superando o anterior recorde de 2019, de
38,7 graus. As elevadas temperaturas levaram os governantes do país a lançar um alerta vermelho e a
fazer algumas reuniões Cobra, habitualmente feitas em situações de emergência.
Sines 4.0 project will use seawater to cool structures
(…) “The site has been extensively studied to ensure the maximum level of resilience in situations of
natural disasters, which is required by our customers”, says Afonso Salema, CEO of Start Campus.
In addition, “mild temperatures” in the region also have helped. In terms of resilience, the project
is “a mission critical project, that is, it is prepared for any type of disaster (earthquakes,
tsunamis, etc.) or extreme conditions (sudden increase in temperatures, etc.)”, adds Afonso
Salema.
Start Campus aims to achieve carbon neutrality in operations by 2025. In this
sense, energy efficiency plays a leading role. To keep the structures at the
ideal temperature, Sines 4.0 will use sea water to cool the servers. But the company
notes that “the data center will cool the servers with seawater, but it will not consume it”. That is
the “water enters the campus, passes through the cooling system and is returned to the ocean”.
