Block #315,199
TWNLength 10★★☆☆☆Bi-Twin Chain · Discovered 12/16/2013, 9:38:00 AM · Difficulty 10.0884 · 6,476,452 confirmations
Interleaved pairs of primes that differ by 2, forming twin prime pairs at each level.
Height
#315,199
Difficulty
10.088449
Transactions
22
Size
32.72 KB
Version
2
Bits
0a16a49d
Nonce
11,823
Timestamp
12/16/2013, 9:38:00 AM
Confirmations
6,476,452
Merkle Root
This is the prime chain origin stored in the block header. It is a composite number (not prime itself) — it equals the first prime in the chain multiplied by a primorial. The origin anchors the entire chain to this specific block.
These are the actual prime numbers discovered by this block, computed using the verified Primecoin formula. Each number has been independently confirmed to pass the Fermat primality test. Use the FactorDB links to verify any number independently.
What this block proved
The miner who found this block proved the existence of 10 consecutive prime numbers forming a Bi-Twin Chain. The prime chain origin — the large number shown above — anchors the chain and is divisible by a primorial (the product of small primes), cryptographically tying these prime numbers to this specific block.
Roughly 1 in 100 blocks. Solid but expected in a healthy network.
Primecoin stores a value called the prime chain origin in each block. The miner found a large integer such that when divided by a primorial (the product of small primes: 2 × 3 × 5 × 7 × …), the result is the first prime in the chain. The origin is deliberately divisible by this primorial — that divisibility is part of the proof.
This is why the origin has many small prime factors — those factors are the primorial divisor. The chain then extends from the first prime using the TWN formula:
