A winter storm hitting much of the United States is bringing temperature drops and severe snow conditions that have resulted in flight cancellations, highway closures and multiple declarations of a state of emergency. The weather phenomenon also affected Bitcoin. According to data from YCharts, the mining power of the digital currency, called hashrate, has dropped by 30% and so far stands at 156.46 EH/s, after falling from nearly 240 EH/s. The drop in mining power came as many large miners halted their operations after the National Weather Service warned of the impending Arctic blast. One of the largest bitcoin mining companies in the world, Riot Blockchain said it was closing its Rockdale, Texas facility due to extreme weather conditions. Other miners took similar stances. Core Scientific, which recently filed for bankruptcy, said “would participate in multiple power cuts to help stabilize the power grid.” Bitcoin production is expected to decline during this period, said to Core Scientific on Twitter.
Due to extreme cold weather sweeping across the eastern and southern half of the US, we will be participating in multiple power curtailments to help stabilize the electrical grid. BTC production is expected to decrease during this time. Wrap up and keep everyone warm. 🇧🇷 pic.twitter.com/WGRgXp5tDB
— Core Scientific (@Core_Scientific) December 23, 2022
Miners shut down equipment
“Please be prepared for some ups and downs this weekend as we deal with winter storms”Neil Galloway, director of operations for Compass Mining, said on Twitter, adding that its Texas operations were down. The effects of the storms, such as power outages, resulted in several Bitcoin miners shutting down their equipment. The PowerOutage website said more than 1.4 million homes and businesses are in the dark. Since China banned Bitcoin mining in 2021, the US has taken on an ever-increasing role in Bitcoin mining. Several miners are in Texas because of cheap energy and favorable regulations – these mining companies tend to close when grid demands increase massively.
The lake band is still raging, but it’s now south of the airport. Here’s a view of our office with some rather impressive snow mounds in the foreground. Many (many) cars are still buried throughout the area. pic.twitter.com/owto22GbF6
— NWS Buffalo (@NWSBUFFALO) December 25, 2022
winter storms
A massive winter storm hit much of the United States on Saturday, with freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall on Christmas Eve resulting in nearly two dozen deaths and leaving hundreds of thousands without power. Nearly 340,000 people were left without power amid blackouts, according to The Washington Post.
“Due to the extremely low temperatures and the subsequent demand for energy in much of the country, the supply of electricity is very restricted”, Duke Energy, which serves customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, said in a press release. More than 3,300 flights were canceled on Christmas Eve, according to commercial flight tracker FlightAware. About 60% of the US is under a winter weather watch, which has been called a full-scale storm by forecasters as it stretches from the Great Lakes near Canada to the Rio Grande on the border with Mexico. Only certain regions of the US were expected to escape the bitter cold on Christmas Day – parts of California, Oregon, Arizona and Florida are among the few places in the country that will not experience subzero temperatures, predicts the weather bureau.
