Overview

This node interacts with the Blockstream API (Esplora) to retrieve Bitcoin network data. Specifically, for the 'Get Mempool Stats' operation, it fetches statistics about the mempool, which is the collection of unconfirmed transactions waiting to be added to the blockchain. This is useful for monitoring network congestion, transaction backlog, and mempool size in real-time. Practical applications include blockchain analytics, transaction fee estimation, and network health monitoring.

Use Case Examples

1. A user wants to monitor the current mempool size and transaction count on the Bitcoin mainnet to adjust transaction fees accordingly.
2. A developer integrates mempool statistics into a dashboard to visualize network congestion and transaction delays.

Properties

Output

JSON

• json - Contains the mempool statistics data returned from the Blockstream API, including metrics like transaction count, total size, and fee estimates.

Dependencies

• Blockstream API (Esplora) endpoint accessed via HTTP requests using axios library

Troubleshooting

• Common issues include network connectivity problems or incorrect network selection leading to failed API requests.
• If the API endpoint is unreachable or returns an error, the node throws an error unless 'Continue On Fail' is enabled, in which case it outputs the error message in the JSON output.
• Ensure the 'Network' parameter is correctly set to match the desired blockchain network to avoid invalid responses.

Links

• Blockstream Esplora API - Mempool Endpoint - Official documentation for the mempool statistics endpoint used by this node.