If you know how Bitcoin Mining works, you may wonder if it would be worthwhile using a supercomputer for it. Strange idea? The answer is no.
Supercomputer running Bitcoin Mining?
Supercomputers have different demands than Bitcoin Miners, as they have to solve other tasks. For bitcoin miners, so-called ASIC chips, which have been optimized for hashing the SHA-256 algorithm, are used. If a supercomputer were to run bitcoin mining now, not much would change at the hashrate. Also, the success of the supercomputer would be controversial, since it is highly inefficient compared to the Asics. Probably so incompetent that the cost of running electricity is higher than the revenue it would generate. One estimate states that the 500 fastest supercomputers in the world can’t afford the hashrates that the bitcoin network provides.
Bitcoin Mining and The Key Factors
As mentioned earlier, the Bitcoin mining needs notable computational capabilities to encrypt the hash. Many resolute mining equipment have been created out of GPUs, FPGAs (Field programmable gate array) and ASICs (application-specific integrated circuit). And you can speculate that some supercomputers are spending time on Bitcoin mining.
Supercomputers utilize a big arrangement of CPUs assigned to processing massive data units called vector processing, but they don’t have much GPU power. It’s much more passive than mining with new GPUs and ASICs that are Integrated Circuits particularly created for special use, rather than designed for general-purpose use.
Nowadays, Bitcoins mining is often achieved with ASICs chips. They are profoundly optimized for the single objective of solving computations needed in mining. The lack of versatility allows to immensely expand their efficiency over general-purpose machines. This has made Bitcoin hashrate network to develop about 20,000 times more since the initial Bitcoin ASICs have dispatched. This lack in adaptability allows to increase their efficiency over general-purpose hardware and has made the hashrate of the Bitcoin network (the total “mining power”) to rise about 20,000x (twenty thousand fold) since the initial Bitcoin ASICs have dispatched. General-purpose chips are much less efficient at mining, and therefore don’t stand a chance at competing.
Bitcoin mining with a supercomputer in Russia
In the month of February, a couple of nuclear scientists were arrested in Russia who wanted to misuse a supercomputer for Bitcoin Mining. When the scientists wanted to connect the supercomputer to the Internet, this was noticeable. The authorities reacted immediately and arrested scientists. The supercomputer has been used to perform physical calculations.
Future Of Bitcoin Mining
There are speculations that the future of Bitcoin is in danger because of quantum computers. A paper published in arxiv.org shows how quantum computer could ruin and damage Bitcoin’s security protocol. The elliptic curve signature system employed by Bitcoin is at jeopardy and could be destroyed by quantum machine as early as 2027, by the most hopeful assessments.
Disclaimer: This information should not be interpreted as an endorsement of any cryptocurrency. It is not a recommendation to trade. The crypto market is full of surprises and overhyped assets. Do your research before buying anything. Do not invest more than you can afford to lose.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Steemit, and join our Telegram channel for the latest blockchain and cryptocurrency news.
