Summary

Ethereum’s Glacier Arrow network upgrade postpones the network’s difficulty bomb until June 2022. Prior to this, many updates also postponed the deadline for the difficulty bomb. According to the system design, the difficulty bomb will increase the cost and difficulty of mining Ethereum. This feature promotes the development of Ethereum 2.0 and helps miners transition to the new proof-of-stake blockchain.

The update includes an Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) to delay the difficulty bomb. EIPs are change proposals created and reviewed by the Ethereum community. The Arrow Glacier is particularly eye-catching, and it seems to be the last delay of the difficulty bomb before the launch of Ethereum 2.0.

Introduction

There’s still some time until the launch of Ethereum 2.0. In the meantime, regular updates are just what keep the blockchain running on track. For the average user, the Glacial Arrow update is a small change, but it’s significant. In fact, without this update, the network might end up being unusable. Let’s take a look at what this update means for users, stakers, cryptocurrency miners, and the upcoming Ethereum 2.0, and why this upgrade is being done.

What is the Ethereum Glacial Upgrade?

Ethereum Glacier is a fairly simple update that was completed on December 9, 2021 in block 13773000. Glacier delays the network's difficulty bomb, giving developers more time to prepare for Ethereum 2.0. Delaying the difficulty bomb is a routine operation for Ethereum updates. Previously, the difficulty bomb was expected to arrive in December 2021 with the London hard fork, and is currently postponed to around June 2022.

Arrow Glacier is very similar to the previous Muir Glacier upgrade in January 2020, which also delayed the difficulty bomb. Both updates only included an Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP) to delay the Ice Age. Constantinople, Byzantium, and London updates also delayed the difficulty bomb.

What is the Ethereum Difficulty Bomb?

Currently, the Ethereum blockchain uses a Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism. As a result, transaction validators must use computing power to solve mathematical puzzles. In this process, costs are incurred to establish consensus and protect the network from criminals.

The difficulty bomb gradually increases the difficulty of these puzzles, making it more expensive to mine a block. At some point in the future, the difficulty bomb will "explode," making it nearly impossible to verify transactions and add new blocks. The blockchain will become incredibly expensive to mine. The difficulty bomb is added for two main reasons:

1. Assist in the development of Ethereum 2.0 and its transition to a Proof of Stake (PoS) model.

2. Force miners to upgrade to the new PoS blockchain, as they can no longer mine Ether (ETH) in Ethereum's old PoW version. This prevents the creation of two conflicting Ethereum networks through a hard fork.

What is an Ethereum Improvement Proposal (EIP)?

An EIP can propose any improvement or change to Ethereum. Anyone can create an EIP, and they are reviewed by the Ethereum community, the editorial board, and Ethereum developers. To be included in the update, the EIP must be approved. Each EIP contains technical requirements to complete specific changes according to a specific EIP format. We mentioned above that the Arrow-shaped Glacial upgrade only includes one EIP, in this case EIP-4345. Its only goal is to delay the time when Ethereum mining enters the Ice Age.

How does the Ethereum Glacial Update affect me?

For standard users, this update will not make any noticeable difference. Over the past year, the confirmed block time has remained almost the same at around 13 seconds. If you are a node operator or miner, you need to upgrade your Ethereum client to the latest version. Otherwise, your client can only be on the old fork of Ethereum and will no longer be supported by the official community.

Summarize

The Arrow Glacier is just a small update, but it is significant. Without it, the network's mining costs will increase earlier and usage will slow down. It is also very exciting for the Ethereum community. If it is the last extension of the difficulty bomb, Ethereum 2.0 may meet the public as early as June 2022.