Mining is more than just a buzzword in the crypto world. It's one of the fundamental mechanisms that ensures the security, transparency, and reliability of the Bitcoin network—without any central authority.

What exactly is mining?

Mining is the digital equivalent of accounting in a decentralized system. When a transaction is initiated on Bitcoin, it is sent to a public network. Miners, using powerful computers, then compete to:

  • Validate these transactions,

  • Group them into blocks,

  • And most importantly, add these blocks to the blockchain.

In exchange for their work, miners receive a reward: newly created bitcoins. This is the only way to introduce new bitcoins into circulation.

Proof of Work: the security mechanism

The protocol used by Bitcoin is based on Proof of Work. To add a new block, each miner must solve a complex cryptographic problem. The first miner to find the correct solution broadcasts their block to the rest of the network, which verifies it.

This system guarantees that:

  • The transactions are authentic,

  • The chain cannot be manipulated effortlessly
    excessive computing,

  • Decentralization is respected: no actor
    No one controls Bitcoin.

A global infrastructure

Thousands of miners, spread across the globe, participate in this process. It's this geographic and structural diversity that makes Bitcoin extremely resilient to attack. Changing a past transaction would require reconstructing the entire blockchain history faster than the rest of the network, a near-impossible feat.

An energy-intensive process… and one that is changing

Mining consumes a lot of electricity, which regularly sparks debates about its environmental impact. This is one reason why newer blockchains (like TON) are adopting other models, including proof of stake, which we'll explore in another article.

To remember
Mining is the backbone of the Bitcoin network. It verifies transactions, ensures system security, and distributes new bitcoins. Without it, there would be no trust, no blockchain, and no Bitcoin.

 
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