Miracle in the Mempool: Solo Bitcoin Miner Defies 180 Million-to-1 Odds to Claim Block Reward

In an era where Bitcoin’s network hash rate is soaring and mining difficulty is relentlessly climbing, an extraordinary event has captured the attention of the crypto world. A lone “solo miner,” armed with a minuscule amount of computing power and facing astronomical odds of 1 in 180 million, has successfully solved Bitcoin block #924,569. This incredible feat allowed them to single-handedly claim a substantial reward of 3.146 Bitcoins, valued at approximately $264,000.

According to data from the blockchain explorer Mempool, this exceptionally fortunate miner achieved their breakthrough on November 21st, utilizing the independent mining platform CKpool. The block reward itself amounted to 3.125 BTC (roughly $262,756), supplemented by an additional 0.021 BTC ($1,802) in transaction fees, bringing the total windfall to 3.129 Bitcoins (approximately $264,558).

A Needle in a Haystack: The Unbelievable Odds

What makes this achievement truly astounding is the miner’s incredibly low hash rate. At the moment of solving the block, their computing power stood at a mere 6 TH/s. To put this into perspective, Bitcoin’s average network hash rate in October had already surpassed 855.7 EH/s (exahashes per second). This means the solo miner’s contribution represented an infinitesimal 0.0000007% of the total network’s processing power—a mere drop in a vast ocean of computational might.

Con Kolivas, the developer behind CKpool, underscored the sheer improbability of this success on social media platform X. He highlighted that “for a miner of this size, the probability of successfully solving a block is only 1 in 180 million! Even when calculated on a daily basis, the probability is only 1 in 1.2 million.” This makes the event akin to winning a multi-state lottery with a single ticket.

The Allure of Solo Mining: High Risk, High Reward

Given the astronomically low chances of independently securing a block reward on the immense Bitcoin network, most smaller miners opt to join “mining pools.” These pools aggregate computing power, allowing participants to mine collaboratively and share rewards proportionally based on their contribution, thereby ensuring a more stable and predictable income stream.

However, a persistent few choose the path of solo mining. These intrepid individuals take a calculated gamble through independent mining platforms like CKpool, driven by the dream of a “winner-takes-all” block reward. This approach bypasses the fees charged by mining pools, and while the odds are incredibly long, a successful block find can be life-changing—a true crypto lottery jackpot.

Not the First, Nor Likely the Last

This “small fish beats big whale” narrative, though rare, is not entirely unprecedented in Bitcoin’s history. For instance, in 2022, another solo miner with a hash rate of just 126 TH/s miraculously mined a block, walking away with rewards then valued at approximately $260,000.

In recent months, several other independent miners, some with more substantial self-owned or leased hash rates, have also successfully mined Bitcoin blocks, adding new chapters to these captivating tales of improbable success in the decentralized world of cryptocurrency.