Ethereum Update Set to Undergo Ropsten Testnet, Completion to Mark Readiness of ‘Merge’

The eco-friendly upgrade to the Ethereum blockchain is gearing up to undergo the Ropsten Beacon Chain testnet, one of the longest-existing proof-of-work (PoW) testnet. Basically, the Ropsten testnet is the most popular replica of the Ethereum network. It is capable of imitating the aspects of the ETH mainnet, making it a test model of what Ethereum’s upgraded PoS network may work like. The new Ethereum network is named the ‘The Merge’. This recode will cut Ethereum’s carbon emissions by a substantial amount.

“Client teams are now ready to run Ropsten – the oldest proof-of-work testnet – through The Merge. In preparation, a Ropsten Beacon Chain has been launched to provide consensus to the network. The Ropsten network, which is intended to be deprecated after The Merge, will run through the upgrade earlier in the development process than previous network upgrades,” said an official blog from Ethereum developers.

Tim Beiko, one of the developers of The Merge, shared the milestone announcement on Twitter. He revealed that The Merge is expected to go under this beacon chain testnet around June 8.

The release of The Merge is expected to be ready by August this month.

Before that happens, two more testnets will be run through Ethereum 2.0 in a bid to ensure appropriate transaction execution.

Meanwhile, back in April, The Merge developers successfully stress-tested the network using a so-called mainnet shadow fork.

At the time, another Ethereum developer Marius Van Der Wijden had called this a “huge success”.

The developers are running extensive tests on the Ethereum revamp because decentralised finance (DeFi) apps reportedly worth over $100 billion (roughly Rs. 7,61,110 crore) are supported on the blockchain, and cannot be put in jeopardy.

The PoS mining operations use randomly selected miners to validate transactions. This cuts its energy consumption requirement, reducing its carbon emission.

The developers are running extensive tests on the Ethereum revamp because decentralised finance (DeFi) apps reportedly worth over $100 billion (roughly Rs. 7,61,110 crore) are supported on the blockchain, and cannot be put in jeopardy.