Major labs to build computer cloud

Three major research centres have teamed up with information technology companies across Europe to launch a cloud-computing system. The particle physics laboratory Cern, the European Space Agency and the European Molecular Biology Laboratory said they would work with companies including Capgemini, Telefonica and Thales to establish a shared high-performance cloud-computing infrastructure. Called Helix Nebula, the cloud will be made available to other laboratories after a two-year pilot phase.