As many investors know, Ethereum is undergoing a major development called “The Merge” at the end of the year. This is intended to move the Ethereum network to proof of stake, which has a number of advantages over proof of work.
READ ALSO: How Ethereum is progressing after the successful merger at Ropsten
Sepolia
Ethereum fanatics can already “smell” The Merge. Indeed, on Wednesday, developers arranged for a merge with the Sepolia test network. This execution has been successfully completed, and with it Ethereum developers are one step closer to the “real” Merge.
Sepolia’s proof of work chain has thus merged with a proof of stake chain. This required node operators, from the proof of work as well as the proof of stake sides of the test network, to update their client software. The purpose of this was to check if the validation nodes of the two Sepolia chains can work together.
The real Merge is coming
This test, as has now happened at Sepolia, was previously performed on the Ropsten network (Ethereum’s oldest network). Performing this kind of merge on a public test network is meant to be an exercise for the main network.
Although an exact date has not yet been set, Ethereum’s main blockchain is nevertheless coming soon (estimated to be in late 2022). Before this happens, one more testnet needs to be ‘merged’. This is the Goerli testnet, the merging of which is planned in the coming weeks.
After this, the entire Ethereum community can look forward to Ethereum’s long-awaited, final proof of stake network.
READ ALSO: The Upgrade That Shows That The Ethereum Merger is Getting Closer
Why proof of stake?
One of the main reasons the Ethereum community is looking forward to the merge is because the network will require less power after this. In addition, it will be easier to participate in the management of the network. All you have to do for this is deposit ETH – that’s it!
Currently, you still have to buy ETH miners to manage the network, and then you have to maintain them as well. After the switch, Ethereum’s energy consumption is estimated to reduce by 99%.
