How Does an Increase in Network Hash Rate Affect Mining Difficulty?

Network hash rate and mining difficulty are intrinsically linked in most Proof-of-Work (PoW) systems. As more miners join the network, the total hash rate increases, which means blocks are found faster than the target block time.

The protocol's difficulty adjustment algorithm automatically increases the difficulty to slow down block discovery back to the target rate. This dynamic ensures a stable issuance schedule.