Question 1

What chain is this block on, and how does it relate to QRL 2.0?

Accepted Answer

This block lives on QRL, the original Quantum Resistant Ledger chain — a Proof-of-Work network launched in 2018 that pioneered post-quantum cryptography on a public blockchain using XMSS hash-based signatures. QRL 2.0 is its next-generation successor: an EVM-compatible Proof-of-Stake chain with newer post-quantum cryptography (ML-DSA-87, lattice-based) and full smart-contract support. The QRL community is transitioning from the original Proof-of-Work chain to QRL 2.0.

Question 2

How can I tell if this QRL block is settled?

Accepted Answer

This chain uses Proof-of-Work with cumulative-work resolution — there is no protocol-level finality the way QRL 2.0 has. The conventional rule of thumb is to wait 6-12 confirmations on top before treating a block as settled; after that, the cost of rewriting the cumulative hashing work becomes prohibitive. Use the Prev/Next buttons at the bottom to navigate forward and check how many blocks have accumulated on top of this one.

Question 3

What does 'Value moved' mean for this block?

Accepted Answer

It's the sum of native QRL transferred across every transaction in this block. Token transfers (created via QRL's native 'token' subtype) typically don't contribute to this number — they're accounted for in the token's own ledger, not at the chain level. The figure is reconstructed from the transaction list on this page rather than read from a header field.

Question 4

What is the block reward, and how is it paid out?

Accepted Answer

Every QRL block pays its miner a static block reward plus the sum of every transaction fee collected in the block. The static portion follows an exponential-decay emission curve (with a 60% reduction applied by the on-chain QIP-16 governance vote), so blocks mined in 2018 paid noticeably more than blocks mined today. Payment happens via the block's coinbase transaction, which Quantascan surfaces as the Miner address on this page.

Question 5

How does QRL difficulty work?

Accepted Answer

Difficulty is the target the miner had to beat under QRL's custom QRandomX Proof-of-Work algorithm: hash the block header repeatedly with different nonces until you find one producing a hash below the target. The protocol adjusts difficulty every block so the long-run average block time stays close to 60 seconds — higher difficulty means more hashing was needed, lower means less. The Mining Details panel on this page shows the target this specific block had to satisfy.

Question 6

What makes QRL quantum-resistant?

Accepted Answer

Every QRL transaction is signed with XMSS — the eXtended Merkle Signature Scheme — standardised by NIST in 2018 (SP 800-208). XMSS is a hash-based, one-time-signature scheme: it does not rely on the discrete-log problem that Shor's algorithm breaks on a quantum computer, so signatures remain unforgeable even against an attacker with quantum hardware. QRL 2.0 uses a different post-quantum scheme (ML-DSA-87, lattice-based) but the principle is the same: post-quantum security by default.

Question 7

Why is there no 'Burnt' fees or 'Withdrawals' card on this page?

Accepted Answer

Those are QRL 2.0 features that don't exist on the Proof-of-Work chain. Burnt fees come from EIP-1559, the base-fee market QRL 2.0 inherits from Ethereum — the PoW chain uses sender-set fees with no protocol burn. Withdrawals are EIP-4895 validator-reward payouts that only exist on a Proof-of-Stake chain — here, miners are paid in full via the coinbase transaction shown on this page. If you're looking for those cards, switch to a QRL 2.0 block.

Question 8

What's the difference between this block's height and its hash?

Accepted Answer

Height (the #N at the top) is the sequential block number — the block's position in the chain since genesis (height 0). Hash is the 32-byte cryptographic fingerprint of the block's full contents — change a single bit and the hash changes entirely. The More Details section below shows the full block hash and the parent hash that anchors this block to its predecessor.

Question 9

Will the contents of this block ever change?

Accepted Answer

No. Once a QRL block has accumulated enough confirmations its contents are effectively permanent — rewriting it would require redoing all the Proof-of-Work for every block on top, which is computationally infeasible. Combined with XMSS signatures (which remain unforgeable even against quantum attackers), the block's transactions and reward are anchored to the historical record forever.

Transaction ID	Method	From	To	Amount	Fee
6204bc…3c9f	Coinbase	Coinbase	Grand PheasantQ01090…2bea	6.635937386 Quanta	0 shor
76bc93…4fd4	Transfer	Velvet CrossbillQ01060…d5f8	→ 7 recipients	84.7333 Quanta	700,000 shor
7a8221…659f	Transfer	Velvet CrossbillQ01060…d5f8	→ 5 recipients	15.3615 Quanta	500,000 shor
cfc257…98a2	Transfer	Velvet CrossbillQ01060…d5f8	→ 4 recipients	0.7346 Quanta	400,000 shor
4a73a2…3622	Transfer	Velvet CrossbillQ01060…d5f8	→ 3 recipients	6.7637 Quanta	300,000 shor

QRL Block #20,178

#20,178

Transactions in this block (5 · 20 rows)

Miner

Block at a glance

FAQ about this block

#20,178

Transactions in this block (5 · 20 rows)

Miner

Block at a glance