Article by Ayman Alheraki on January 11 2026 10:35 AM
Fortran (FORmula TRANslation) is one of the oldest programming languages in the world, developed in the 1950s to be the leading language for scientific and engineering computing. It became indispensable for performing complex mathematical operations and achieving high precision in calculations. As time has passed, and with the emergence of powerful programming languages such as C++, Rust, Go, Pascal, and Java, the question of Fortran's current relevance arises: does it still maintain a unique strength in specialized scientific fields, or have modern languages overtaken it?
Modern Fortran is far from the old version that emerged in the 1950s. It has undergone significant updates that make it adaptable to the current requirements of the industry. Some of the most important developments include:
Updates to the Language Standard: From Fortran 77 to Fortran 90, then Fortran 95, and later Fortran 2003, 2008, and 2018, there have been tremendous improvements in performance, array handling, and library support. Fortran 2018, for example, introduced high-performance parallel processing capabilities for better use of multi-core processors.
Improved Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) Support: Fortran 2003 added support for object-oriented programming, allowing developers to build more complex data structures and make code more reusable. While OOP isn't as commonly used in scientific computing, it offers new possibilities for structuring large, complex engineering applications.
Parallelism and High-Performance Computing (HPC): One of the main reasons Fortran continues to be used in scientific computing is its support for parallelism. In the modern language versions, parallel computing is made much easier, with libraries like OpenMP and MPI allowing for faster execution on multi-processor systems and advanced architectures.
Array Operations: One of Fortran’s original strengths in scientific computing is its built-in support for array operations. This allows developers to perform complex mathematical operations on large arrays succinctly and efficiently, with automatic optimizations for data parallelism and memory access patterns.
When it comes to scientific computing that requires high precision, Fortran outshines many modern languages like C++, Rust, and Java. Fortran offers native support for handling precise, intensive calculations with speed and efficiency, making it the language of choice for fields like engineering, meteorology, and astrophysics.
Although languages like C++ and Rust have advanced features and high performance, they often rely on external libraries to perform complex scientific computations. Fortran, on the other hand, has these capabilities built in, meaning scientific computing tasks can often be done with fewer lines of code and better integration within the working environment compared to other languages.
With the rise of parallel computing, Fortran continues to be a strong contender, especially in supercomputing environments. It supports parallel computing out of the box, particularly through libraries such as OpenMP and MPI, enabling researchers to run large-scale scientific simulations much more efficiently than most other languages, which require additional configuration for parallel processing.
Fortran allows developers to write shorter, more efficient code to process massive datasets and perform scientific calculations, compared to languages like C++ and Rust, which generally require more verbose and complicated code, especially when managing memory manually. This makes Fortran the preferred choice for applications requiring computationally intensive calculations in fields like physics or engineering.
Fortran’s Unique Strengths in Scientific Computing
Fortran continues to stand out in several specialized areas where other languages often fall short or require additional effort to match its performance:
Scientific Simulation: Fortran remains the go-to language for running simulations in computational fluid dynamics, climate modeling, and molecular dynamics due to its inherent efficiency in handling complex, large-scale simulations.
Nuclear and Aerospace Applications: Because of its ability to handle large-scale numerical computations with high precision, Fortran is still used extensively in nuclear engineering and space exploration applications.
Legacy Data Science Applications: Many legacy data science programs rely on Fortran for their high-performance needs, and rewriting these programs in a newer language like Python or C++ often requires a massive effort. Fortran continues to be the most effective language for running these legacy computations without significant rewrites.
Will Fortran Continue to Compete?
Fortran today is far from the language of the past; it has evolved to meet modern demands, yet it has preserved its core strengths in scientific and engineering computing. While modern languages like Rust and Go are certainly competing in the high-performance computing space, Fortran still remains the best option for many researchers and engineers due to its unmatched efficiency and precision in performing scientific calculations.
Ultimately, Fortran proves that it is not just an old language, but a continuously evolving programming platform that still meets the needs of the most demanding scientific and engineering applications, maintaining its leading position in fields that require exceptional computational power.