What is an Orphaned Block?
An orphaned block refers to a block in a blockchain network that was successfully mined but is excluded from the main blockchain. This happens when two miners produce valid blocks nearly simultaneously, but only one can be accepted into the longest chain. The other, losing block, becomes an “orphan.”
Orphaned blocks are not fraudulent or invalid; they simply lose the race to be part of the primary chain. Miners who create these blocks do not receive block rewards, even though the block itself is valid. The blockchain network ensures that all transactions in an orphaned block will eventually be confirmed in another valid block.
For example, in the Bitcoin network, orphaned blocks may occur due to temporary network delays or when miners in different parts of the world solve blocks at nearly the same time. The protocol resolves this by selecting the chain with the most computational work as the main chain.
Although orphaned blocks do not impact the integrity of the blockchain, they can cause temporary delays in transaction confirmations. Transactions in these blocks are re-processed in the next accepted block, ensuring that they are not lost.
