The Ethereum Foundation has explained how the Merge upgrade will happen in two different parts on the consensus layer and the execution layer.
Ethereum Foundation, the non-profit running the Ethereum blockchain network, has finally confirmed the dates for the Merge upgrade in the upcoming month of September. The Ethereum Foundation noted:
“Following years of hard work, Ethereum’s proof-of-stake upgrade is finally here! The successful upgrade of all public testnets is now complete, and The Merge has been scheduled for the Ethereum mainnet.The Merge is a two-step process. The first step is a network upgrade, followed by the execution layer’s transition from proof-of-work to proof-of-stake”.
The transition to Ethereum PoS will begin with the Bellatrix upgrade scheduled on the Beacon Chain on September 6 at 11:34:47am UTC. The Beacon Chain is the consensus layer of the Ethereum blockchain.
Later, the Paris upgrade will be triggered by a Total Difficulty threshold dubbed the Terminal Total Difficulty (TTD). The Ethereum Foundation noted that Paris, the execution layer’s portion of the transition, will be triggered by the Terminal Total difficulty of 58750000000000000000000, expected between September 10-20.
Ethereum Foundation Explained the Software Upgrade
The Ethereum software upgrade will shift the network to a Proof-of-Stake model from the existing Proof-of-Work model. The Ethereum PoS model will be more efficient, and scalable while offering a low-cost transition facility to all ETH users.
The Proof-of-Stake Ethereum network largely depends on validators instead of miners. To run a node on Ethereum PoS, validators need to lock sums of money to prove their trustworthiness to the network.
Thus, according to the Ethereum Foundation, after the Merge Upgrade, the Ethereum PoS won’t consume a lot of computing power, unlike the current Ethereum blockchain. This will make the Ethereum blockchain more environmental-friendly addressing one of the biggest issues of energy consumption. As per previous reports, Ethereum PoS will consume 99% lesser energy than Ethereum PoW. Edul Patel, CEO and co-founder of global crypto investment platform Mudrex, told Bloomberg:
“The Ethereum Foundation has released new information about the upcoming upgrade, indicating that all the preparations are going smoothly. The announcement confirmed that the upgrade will be fully completed between September 10th to 20th. This announcement might likely keep buyers active in the market, pushing the price of ETH up”.
The ETH price has corrected nearly 20% over the last week. As of press time, ETH is trading at $1,705 with a market cap of $208 billion.
Bhushan is a FinTech enthusiast and holds a good flair in understanding financial markets. His interest in economics and finance draw his attention towards the new emerging Blockchain Technology and Cryptocurrency markets. He is continuously in a learning process and keeps himself motivated by sharing his acquired knowledge. In free time he reads thriller fictions novels and sometimes explore his culinary skills.
