Data centers have become part of the fabric of everyday life: storing and processing our internet data, ensuring data is available without delay from our smart devices and powering organizations’ digital environments and experiences. The technological nature of the military today means the significance of data centers has extended to locking in maximum defense capabilities.
Still, most people think of data centers as big buildings with white halls that consume a lot of energy, but that’s just one type. More relevant to military operations are portable edge data centers “in a box” that range from the size of a vending machine to a 20-foot container.
These modular data centers are pieces of tech infrastructure that use similar but compacted technology to operate. They can be designed to be rugged, relatively lightweight and easily transportable to keep up with ever-changing security needs.
Edge Micro Data Centers for Modern Military Operations
Latency is one of the key reasons we need this infrastructure. Even though data travels at the speed of light, it functions like transmitting data between squadrons are processed via a data center on home soil — potentially thousands of miles away — the few microseconds lost to latency could have a major impact on the result of those decisions.
There are other practical benefits to beating latency too. As the level of application is heightened, such as automated robots and big data in national defense, it makes sense to process the bulk of that activity at the edge. Otherwise, we could see traffic jams and avoidably high costs as data channels between military operations and the home base are clogged.
Befitting national security, edge data centers also need backup. One edge site can suffer an outage or even be destroyed. Nearby but not in the exact same vicinity, these locations need a backup data center ready to take over when needed.
Edge data center cooling is another important consideration. In certain military environments, things can heat up quickly, and data centers will fail without adequate cooling built in. We’re likely to see immersion cooling, which involves submerging hardware in mineral oil, to efficiently cool it. This technique allows data centers to operate in temperatures up to around 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50°C), as opposed to around 95°F (35°C) for air cooling.
Cyberthreats are another consideration in national security matters, and data centers are vital in the context of cybercrime. First, they’re a popular target, as when they’re taken offline, everything connected to them is too. Second, they’re needed to execute cybersecurity defense operations. Edge data centers have the capacity to operate in a closed loop, disconnected from any networks through which attacks might come.
This isn’t just about new infrastructure for national defense operations. Edge data centers are fast becoming one of the most important foundations for a new level of security. Like it or not, we’ll see an increased use of robotics and other advanced technologies in military operations. Having the right infrastructure to power it is as important as the tech itself.
There will no doubt be other uses that come to light, but one thing is certain: as defense becomes more digitized, data centers are going to play a much larger role in national security readiness.
