A strong heat wave cresting across the United States has pushed many Bitcoin miners offline. That’s not great for delicate hashboards with long ROI periods.

Heatwaves are business as usual for many miners in North America, though. The tiny amount of hashrate online before the China mining ban in North America was typically found idle during the hottest parts of the summer. As Nakamotor’s Charlie Spears pointed out on the Compass Podcast (publishing Wednesday, July 20), it's often the wrong choice to mine in ambient temperatures over 90F.

Chip temperatures are a function of the ambient temperature, airflow and energy. All three have to work in conjunction to provide a stable operating environment. Stabler environments mean longer last chips and more Bitcoin. And if ambient temperatures just aren't budging, it's best to sit out and wait rather than risk a busted chip.

What does this mean for North American miners, specifically in warmer regions like Oklahoma or Texas? Spears thinks we could see a redux of the China wet season migration, where Bitcoin miners would move from cheap coal energy in China’s northern province of Xinjiang to hydroelectric rich southern province of Sichuan. Instead of cheaper energy, you’d get cooler temperatures and more uptime.

- William Foxley