A contributor to Bitcoin Core has utilized Marathon Digital’s template building tools to create a unique artwork within a Bitcoin block. Known as “block art,” this custom graphic is created by arranging transactions in a block, which can then be viewed on a Bitcoin indexer website. Marathon Digital, a mining firm, shared the details of block 836361, which they successfully mined on March 26. Referred to as the M block, Marathon Digital wanted to showcase its template building capabilities and technology stack through this visualization. While the mining company does not offer this specific service, they believe that it could open up new creative possibilities in the Bitcoin space.
Portland.HODL, the user who created the block art, claims to have achieved it through a lengthy process of trial and error. The process utilized OP_RETURN transactions in the Bitcoin protocol, which allow for the inclusion of small amounts of arbitrary data in a transaction. By carefully crafting the content of these transactions and arranging them correctly, an image or pattern can be revealed when the block data is visualized.
To create block art, miners would need to modify their software to select specific transactions that form the desired pattern, instead of prioritizing transactions based on profit. Additionally, significant hashing power is required to mine a block with the desired set of transactions. The total fees paid to achieve the desired output in this case were $122,524, which Marathon Digital covered themselves.
Marathon Digital recently introduced a direct BTC transaction submission service to streamline large and complex Bitcoin transactions. The company believes that excluding blocks from full pay-per-share calculations would ensure more accurate miner fee estimates and prevent any impact on network fees.
Further details on the “M block” and the implications of block composability are yet to be provided by Marathon Digital and Portland.HODL.