Bitcoin hashing power pushed the difficulty up nearly 15% to a previous low of 144 trillion on Friday, based on data from CoinWarz. That move reversed an earlier decline of 10% following widespread outages in parts of the US.
The numbers are dull: the machines went silent during severe weather, then came back online, and the protocol recalibrated itself.
Winter Break And Back
The Foundry USA pool saw dramatic fluctuations in computing power, falling around 198 EH/s before rising from around 400 EH/s. Reports say that many operators in affected areas have temporarily shut down during the winter storms to protect equipment and support grids.
Some of the places that host miners are linked to resources. Power has been conserved. Redirected energy.
Bitcoin mining difficulty graph. Source: CoinWarz
Dynamic Energy Deals Changed the Game
Reports note that several miners have done more than stop work. LM Funding America reported that the rigs are reducing and sending contract power back to the grid, pocketing reduced payments that have helped reduce lost drilling time.
Canaan Inc. it also said its US sites are participating in demand response with local partners. These arrangements are part of why many facilities can shut down the Internet when the grid needs to be relieved, then resume when conditions improve.
Source: CoinWarz
What Does High Difficulty Mean?
Bitcoin’s difficulty is designed to reset every 2,016 blocks to hold average block times close to the 10-minute target. When more hash power is returned, the algorithm raises the difficulty. That makes the network harder to attack and raises the work required to win a block reward.
For miners, the higher difficulty reduces the Bitcoin earned per unit of computation, squeezing the margins of assets with old metals or high electricity bills.
Price Trends Stay in Touch with the Topics
Bitcoin traded near $68,000 as markets reacted to growing tensions in the world, particularly between the US and Iran. Trading felt cautious. The volume is simple. Prices fell and stalled in headline-driven flows, indicating that investor sentiment is still changing on global issues.
At the same time, network metrics were shifting underground – a reminder that technical and macro drivers can pull in different directions.
The US now provides the largest share of global hash power, according to the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance. That means that regional events, weather, and grid policies in the US are very important to the global security and economics of miners.
Some firms have begun to treat mining as a variable load that can stabilize grids in times of stress, creating new sources of income in addition to block rewards.
Politics and the Voice of the Market
Comments from politicians and geopolitical movements add to the tension. The mention of US President Donald Trump in recent headlines has been mixed with broader market fears; geopolitics can drag down appetite and keep crypto prices pegged.
The difficulty of re-commitment did not cause a big jump in the price. Instead, it reinforced a simple truth: the protocol handled the shock, but the miners felt the pinch.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView
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