How Does a Blockchain Resolve Temporary Forks Caused by Network Latency?

A blockchain resolves temporary forks, often caused by network latency where two miners find a block nearly simultaneously, through the "longest chain rule." Nodes temporarily hold both competing blocks. Once a subsequent block is mined and appended to one of the chains, that chain becomes the longer, valid chain.

All nodes then abandon the shorter chain (the orphaned block) and converge on the longer chain. This process ensures eventual consistency across the network.