Fast Company

Infographic: How Top Websites And Data Centers Suck Down Energy

By now, you've surely gotten wind of Greenpeace's campaign to get Facebook to 'unfriend' coal--Jaymi's been doing some great coverage of the attempts made to get the social media giant to power its giant, energy-hogging data centers with something other than dirty fossil fuels. And it's those data centers that lie at the core of the fight--they're massively energy intensive, currently comprising approximately 1.5% of the nation's energy usage. And as the internet grows, that percentage is slated to grow--which is why Greenpeace is working to get out in front of the issue now. But to the uninitiated, all of this can seem a little confusing--how much energy does storing data cost? How do data centers work? How many data centers do the world's most-trafficked websites require? Thankfully, this extensive infographic can clear it up ...

... as long as you've got a few minutes to absorb all the info. The giant graphic from Peer1 does a pretty good job of explaining why our data is so damn energy-intensive to store -- and how we're generating loads of it every day. Be forewarned that there's also a bout of extended self-promotion from Peer1 at the end, but hey, it's their graphic (view the full-size version here):


This should give you some idea as to why we need to be closely watching the energy expenditures of data centers as demand for them rises in coming years.
