A CHINESE supercomputer is the fastest in the world, comfortably overtaking a U.S. machine that now ranks second.

    Tianhe-2, a supercomputer developed by China’s National University of Defense Technology, achieved processing speeds of 33.86 petaflops (1,000 trillion calculations) per second on a benchmarking test, earning it top spot in a survey of supercomputers by Top500.org Monday.

    Its main rival, the U.S.-designed Titan, achieved 17.59 petaflops per second, the survey’s website said.

    Five of the world’s 10 fastest computers are in the United States, the survey said, with two in China, two in Germany and one in Japan.

    Recognition of Tianhe-2, or Milky Way-2, as the world’s fastest computer marks the return of the title to China after the machine’s predecessor, the Tianhe-1, was ranked the world’s fastest in November 2010, only to be overtaken by a machine from the United States.

    Most of the Tianhe-2’s parts are developed in China, except for its main processors, which are designed by U.S. firm Intel.

    With a cost of US$100 million, Tianhe-2 is expected to be operational at the supercomputer center in Guangzhou later this year.

    Experts believe Tianhe-2 demonstrates that China has been developing its own chip technology, which will ensure the country plays an important role in high-performance computing (HPC).

    The supercomputers on the Top500 list, which is produced twice a year, are rated based on speed of performance in a benchmark test by experts from Germany and the United States. (SD-Agencies)