#NEWS Bitcoin mining difficulty rebounded by 15% after winter storms in the US The Bitcoin network is gaining momentum again 🚀 According to CoinWarz data as of February 20, mining difficulty increased by approximately 15% to 144.4 trillion, completely reversing February's 11% drop. 📉 That decline was the sharpest since China's mining ban in 2021. ❄️ What happened? At the end of January, powerful winter storms in the US disrupted power grids. Miners were forced to temporarily shut down their equipment. The largest mining pool by hashrate, Foundry USA, has reduced its computing power almost in half: from ~400 EH/s to 198 EH/s ⚡️ After power was restored, the hashrate returned, and with it, network difficulty increased. 🧮 Why does difficulty change at all? 🔹 Hashrate = total network computing power 🔹 Difficulty is recalculated every 2016 blocks (~every 2 weeks) 🔹 The goal is to keep the average block time around 10 minutes. When miners return to work → the hashrate increases → the network automatically increases difficulty. 📈 This increases network security 📉 But at the same time, it increases miners' costs. 💰 Paradox: miners profited from the storm Downtime is not always a loss. Many American companies are participating in demand response programs: they can temporarily halt mining operations and sell electricity back to the grid at peak prices. 🔌 For example, LM Funding America redirected capacity to the grid during Storm Fern and earned more than 25% of its usual quarterly revenue from energy programs in one weekend. Equipment manufacturer Canaan Inc. also reported the participation of its American capacities in reducing grid load. 🇺🇸 The United States is the main mining hub Following the ban in China in 2021, the United States has become the world leader in Bitcoin mining. Large capacities are concentrated in the following states: Texas Georgia According to the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, the United States accounts for more than a third of the global hashrate. 🤖 A little analysis History repeats itself: when mining is concentrated in one country, weather or political events can dramatically impact the entire network. After the Chinese ban, the hashrate "moved" to the US, but it didn't become more distributed—it simply changed geography. Today, a single strong storm can shake the global infrastructure more than government decisions 🌍 And another interesting point: miners are increasingly acting as balancers for energy systems. The only question is 🤔 if a new crisis arises, which will be more profitable: ⚡️ selling electricity or ⛏️ supporting the network? 📌 The fact remains: the difficulty recovery to 144.4 trillion confirms that the Bitcoin network has returned to normal operation. But the resilience of the infrastructure remains an open question. ▶️This is James | This is Serj