Cray-2
A four-processor supercomputer from 1985, the fastest in the world at 1.9 gigaflops, cooled by liquid that flowed over its circuits.
Cray Research began delivering the Cray-2 in 1985. It had four vector processors and reached a peak of 1.9 GFLOPS (billion math operations per second). That made it the fastest machine in the world until the Cray Y-MP passed it in 1988.
It was the first Seymour Cray design to use several processors successfully. Dense three-dimensional wiring made heat the main problem. Engineers solved it by pushing Fluorinert, an electrically inert liquid made by 3M, through the circuits under pressure.
Why it matters
The "waterfall" cooler became the public image of supercomputing and appeared in films as a movie prop. Yet the Cray-2 struggled to deliver its peak speed, and the company's X-MP and Y-MP machines outsold it by a wide margin.
Key facts
- Delivered starting in 1985.
- Four vector processors and 1.9 GFLOPS peak speed.
- Fastest machine in the world until the Cray Y-MP in 1988.
- Cooled by Fluorinert liquid pumped over the circuits.
- Outsold by the X-MP and Y-MP.
Sources
- Wikipedia, "Cray-2", en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cray-2, accessed October 14, 2026.
- Mimms Museum of Technology and Art, "Exhibits", mimmsmuseum.org/exhibits/, accessed October 14, 2026.