Inside Google’s High-Tech Data Centers –

Where the Internet Lives:

Thousands of feet of pipes line the inside of Google’s data centers. They paint them bright colors not only because it’s fun, but also to designate which one is which. The bright pink pipe in this photo transfers water from the row of chillers (the green units on the left) to a outside cooling tower

For the first time ever, Google gives us a glimpse of their behemothic storage facilities, where every little piece of data is archived, this is where every article, photo, video, and song sits awaiting to be looked up and generated instantly in search results. The new photos where revealed through a newly launched website, Where the Internet Lives, which features never-before-seen images of eight of Google’s 9 data centers, the places the “physical internet” calls home.

According to Google, their facilities, which must process 3 billion search queries a day and 72 hours of YouTube videos every minute, are “among the most energy efficient in the world,” using half the energy of a typical data center. When you’re on a Google website, you’re accessing one of the most powerful server networks in the known Universe. But what does that actually look like? Here’s your chance to see inside what we’re calling the physical Internet.