Bitcoin mining difficulty dropped 11.16%, marking the sharpest decline since 2021, when China banned cryptocurrency mining. The adjustment lowered difficulty to 125.86 T at block height 935,429. The Bitcoin network automatically adjusts mining difficulty every 2,016 blocks, roughly every two weeks, to maintain an average block time of 10 minutes. The latest correction reflects a sudden and significant reduction in computing power connected to the network. Winter Storm Fern Disrupts US Mining Operations The primary trigger was Winter Storm Fern, which struck the United States in January, affecting 34 states and severely disrupting power infrastructure. Snow, ice, and extreme cold forced multiple mining facilities to temporarily halt operations. Foundry USA, the world’s largest mining pool by hashrate, was among the hardest hit. During the storm, the pool lost approximately 60% of its computing power, with its hashrate falling from nearly 400 EH/s to around 198 EH/s. At the time of writing, Foundry USA had largely recovered to 354 EH/s, maintaining a market share of 29.47%, according to Hashrate Index data. The broader Bitcoin network hashrate fell to a four-month low in January. In addition to severe weather, pressure from a weakening crypto market and some miners reallocating resources to AI data centers contributed to the decline. The average block time currently stands at 9.47 minutes, slightly below the 10-minute target. CoinWarz estimates the next adjustment on February 20 could increase difficulty by approximately 5.63% to 132.96 T. The Bigger Pattern Behind Major Difficulty Drops Large difficulty corrections have historically coincided with structural shifts in the mining industry. During China’s crackdown in 2021, mining difficulty experienced several consecutive downward adjustments, ranging from 12.6% to a record 27.9% between May and July. That period ultimately triggered a massive relocation of mining operations to the United States and other regions. Today’s drop is smaller but symbolically significant. It highlights the geographic concentration of Bitcoin mining in the US and exposes the network’s sensitivity to regional disruptions. A Structural Shift in Progress? Bitcoin is designed as a decentralized system, yet mining power remains clustered in specific jurisdictions. When extreme weather hits those areas, the effects ripple across the global network. As climate volatility increases and miners diversify into AI and high-performance computing, resilience may become as important as cheap electricity. The latest correction could signal not just a temporary disruption, but the early stages of another redistribution cycle in global mining capacity.
