BEIJING, May 27 (Xinhuanet) -- The fastest computer in Europe and the third worldwide with the capacity of 50,000 desktop computers was launched Tuesday in Germany.

    The computer "Jugene" is capable of performing 1,000,000,000,000,000 operations per second. It ranks behind the "Roadrunner" and "Jaguar" computers in the United States, said Kosta Schinarakis from the Juelich research centre, where the computer is located.

    The computer will be used for a wide variety of operations, including research on fuel cells for electric cars, weather forecasting and the origins of the universe, Schinarakis said.

    (Agencies)