HIGH-SPEED ELECTRONIC COMPUTER

BESM-1

Development is complete in the fall of 1952. It is known also as a high-speed electronic computer of Academy of Sciences (AN high-speed electronic computer). It is constructed on electron tubes (5000 lamps). Trial operation  — since 1953. High-speed performance  — 8 — 10 thousand op. / page. An external bulk memory  — on magnetic drums (2 drums on 512 words) and magnetic tapes (4 on 30,000 words). Had the parallel 39-bit ALU from a floating comma executing 20 transactions. Only one machine of this type was created. The chief designer  — Sergey Alekseyevich Lebedev.

In 1953 RAM on mercury tubes (1024 words), at the beginning of 1955  — on potentialscopes (1024 words), in 1957  — on ferritic cores (2047 words) was tested for a high-speed electronic computer.

For 1953 (October  — the international conference in Darmstadt)  — it was the best in Europe.

BESM-2 and M-20

Improved, production version of BESM-1 (M-20 was issued with the participation of SKB-245 of the Ministry of mechanical engineering and instrument making  — a prototype and technical documentation). Also used electron tubes (4000 lamps) and also semiconductor diodes (5000 diodes). OZU on ferritic cores (200,000 ferritic cores). 20 thousand transactions / with, OZU on 4096 45-bit words. Was issued since 1958.

M-40

Development of 1958. Radical modification of BESM-2 for troops of air defense. 40 thousand op. / page from the fixed comma, RAM 4096 of 40-bit words.

M-50

Modification of M-40. 50  thousand op. / page, floating comma.

5e92b

Modification of M-50. 500  thousand op. / page, the fixed comma. OZU of 32 thousand 48-bit words. Were produced since 1966 for military in lots.

5E51

Floating comma, multiprogram mode. Were produced since 1967 for military in lots, in particular, it was set in space Supervisory center.

BESM-3M

Already on semiconductor transistors. The architecture is similar to architecture of machines of M-20 and M220 series.

BESM-4

The three-address machine, also on semiconductors. High-speed performance  — 20 thousand op. / page. The operational memory on ferritic cores (16,384 words, words 48-bit). An opportunity for work with remote objects on express and telegraph channels of communication. The chief designer  —   O.P. Vasilyev. BESM-4 was made since 1965, all 30 machines were released.

The BESM-MGU operating system using the system of interruptions was developed for BESM-4 at faculty VMIK MSU (for the first time in the high-speed electronic computer series).

BESM-6

The first supercomputer of the second generation  — on semiconductor transistors.

Development is complete at the end of 1966. The chief designer  — Sergey Alekseyevich Lebedev, deputy chief designers  — V.A. Melnikov, L.N. Korolyov. In 1968 the release at the plant of the Accounting Machines (AM) in Moscow is begun.

Interesting Facts

• In the story by brothers Strugatsky "Monday begins on Saturday" the main character in a dream sees a high-speed electronic computer with a control panel of color of custard.

Links

• HIGH-SPEED ELECTRONIC COMPUTER
• «Article:HIGH-SPEED ELECTRONIC COMPUTER» в разделе Википедии на русском языке
• The last of Mohicans
• Back in the U.S.S.R.
• Museum of high technologies