A few terms, decoded.
The words that come up at every zoning meeting and in every headline, explained in plain language.
AI workload
Computing jobs that train or run artificial intelligence models. They use specialized chips that draw more power and give off more heat.
BasicsBackup generator
An emergency power source that runs only during outages and routine testing, about 100 hours a year, under EPA emissions rules.
PowerClosed-loop cooling
A system that is filled with water once and recirculates it continuously, rather than pulling fresh water every day.
Cooling and waterColocation facility
A data center where many different companies rent space, power, and cooling for their own equipment.
BasicsCommunity benefit agreement
A written commitment between a developer and a community covering local investments like grants, training, or infrastructure.
Community and economyDark-sky lighting
Shielded, downward-facing fixtures with automatic dimming that keep light on the ground and out of the night sky.
Community and economyData center
A secure building filled with computers that store, process, and move digital information for businesses, hospitals, governments, and everyday users.
BasicsDecibel (dB)
The unit for loudness. 55 dB is about a normal conversation or a running dishwasher.
Community and economyDirect-to-chip cooling
Running coolant through small plates mounted right on the hottest chips, which is far more efficient than cooling the whole room.
Cooling and waterEdge data center
A smaller facility placed close to the people it serves, so information travels a shorter distance.
BasicsEvaporative cooling
Cooling that works by letting a small amount of water evaporate, the same way sweat cools skin.
Cooling and waterFiber network
Cables that carry data as pulses of light. Strong fiber is one of the main reasons operators choose a location.
BasicsFree cooling
Using cool outside air or water to chill equipment when the weather allows, instead of running mechanical chillers.
Cooling and waterGeneral fund
The main budget a county or city uses to pay for schools, roads, public safety, and daily operations.
Community and economyGrid interconnection
The process and equipment that connect a new large customer or power plant to the regional electric grid.
PowerHyperscale data center
A very large facility run by one of the major cloud companies, built to house an enormous number of servers on a single campus.
BasicsImmersion cooling
Submerging servers in a special fluid that does not conduct electricity. It carries heat away and removes the need for loud fans.
Cooling and waterLatency
The delay between sending information and getting a response. Closer facilities and better fiber mean lower latency.
BasicsLoad
The amount of electricity a customer draws from the grid at a given time.
PowerMegawatt (MW)
One million watts. Data center size is often described by how many megawatts of power it can draw.
PowerMultiplier effect
The extra jobs created around a facility at restaurants, contractors, and suppliers. For data centers, about 4.5 per direct job.
Community and economyOpen-loop cooling
A system that draws water in, uses it for cooling, and releases it. Released water must be treated like any other industrial user's.
Cooling and waterPower purchase agreement
A long-term contract to buy electricity from a specific source, often used to finance new solar or wind farms.
PowerPower usage effectiveness (PUE)
Total facility energy divided by the energy used by the computers alone. The closer to 1.0, the more efficient the site.
PowerProperty line
The legal edge of a site. Noise limits are usually measured here, where neighbors would actually hear it.
Community and economyProperty tax base
The total taxable value of property in a community. Data centers add a large amount of it while needing few public services.
Community and economyRack
A tall metal cabinet that holds servers stacked on top of one another, along with their power and network cables.
BasicsRedundancy (N+1)
Keeping at least one extra of every critical part, such as a spare cooling unit or power feed, so one failure never stops service.
BasicsServer
A powerful computer built to run around the clock and handle requests from many people at once. Data centers hold thousands of them.
BasicsSubstation
A facility that steps high-voltage power from transmission lines down to a level buildings can use.
PowerThe cloud
Computing and storage you use over the internet instead of on your own device. The cloud physically lives in data centers.
BasicsTransmission line
A high-voltage power line that carries electricity long distances from power plants to substations.
PowerUninterruptible power supply (UPS)
Battery systems that keep servers running for the seconds between a power interruption and backup generators starting.
PowerUptime
The share of time a facility keeps running without interruption. Critical sites aim for well above 99.9%.
BasicsWater positive
A pledge to put more water back into local watersheds than a company takes out.
Cooling and waterWater usage effectiveness (WUE)
How much water a site uses for each unit of energy its computers consume. Lower is better.
Cooling and waterNo terms match that search.