NSA Utah Data Center Below the Wasatch Range at Sunset

The NSA's Utah Data Center occupies a site in Bluffdale, at the base of the Wasatch Range, under the formal name Intelligence Community Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative Data Center. Built between 2011 and 2013 at a reported cost near $1.5 billion, the complex totals roughly 1.5 million square feet, though server halls make up only a portion of that space. Independent estimates of its data storage capacity have ranged from 3 to 12 exabytes, figures the agency has never officially confirmed. Cooling the servers requires a large water system drawing millions of gallons annually from regional supplies. The site sits west of Point of the Mountain, close enough for a commute from Salt Lake City yet set apart from the valley's denser development.

Photo taken in September 2023.