Bitcoin is known as the most robust and secure network in the world, and not for nothing, as it houses more than 11.000 full nodes connected to each other, providing it with unmatched security to date.
The market-leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin (BTC), reached a new record in its number of connected nodes, which currently exceeds 11.710 nodes, according to data shown by the information provider BitNodesAlthough the majority of these nodes, 24,3%, are not identified and it is not known from which country they operate, the provider points out that the United States is the country with the largest number of nodes connected so far; this country has about 2.048 active devices, which represent 17,5% of the total nodes currently connected to the network.
Source: BitNodes
Although the highest concentration of hash rate of the network is located in China, which dominates around 50% to 60% of Bitcoin's computing power, BitNodes notes that the Asian nation has only 227 full nodes connected at the time of this writing.
Full nodes are those responsible for transmitting transactions within the Bitcoin network, both their own and those made by other users. In addition, these nodes keep a copy of the transaction. blockchain of Bitcoin every time it is updated and new blocks and transactions are added, guaranteeing the transparency, reliability, immutability and security of the network.
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Bitcoin has a new version
A few days ago, this media reported that the team of developers of Bitcoin Core Bitcoin has announced the release of a new version of the Bitcoin software, v0.21.0, which was deployed to the network on January 15 to include new features and improvements to the network. In this version, the developers are preparing for the entry of tap root, one of the most important updates for Bitcoin, in terms of privacy and security and also a new version of Tor.
Bit Nodes shows that this new version of Bitcoin has already been adopted by around 5.020 nodes at the time of writing, 42,8% of the full nodes on the network; while 11% of them continue to run the previous version of the cryptocurrency software.
Stephan Livera, co-founder of Ministry of Nodes, is inviting node runners to upgrade their equipment to run the latest version of the network to support the new version of Tor, which also enables the activation of consensus rules for Taproot.
Several analysts point out that the recent increase in the number of full nodes on the network is being encouraged by the insecurity to which Bitcoin users may be exposed through Wallets and less robust custody solutions. It is worth noting that running a full node helps users ensure a higher level of security for their funds, while also contributing to the integrity and protection of the network.
More than 700 million in mining profits
Mining nodes are those that, in addition to storing a complete copy of the blockchain, also run the mining software, providing computational power to strengthen the network, generating profits for it.
So far in January, Bitcoin miners have generated more than $728 million in profits, an increase of 5,2% compared to the revenue miners reported for the entire month of December.
Source: The block
Both full nodes and mining nodes provide security and stability to Bitcoin, and also ensure that it operates independently, decentralized and autonomously under the consensus rules established in its protocol, as announced by its creator, Satoshi Nakamoto.
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