Ethereum mining is the process of verifying and adding transactions to the Ethereum blockchain. It is also the process by which new Ethereum tokens are created.

Miners are rewarded for their work with Ether, which is the native cryptocurrency of Ethereum.

The Ethereum network is designed to be resistant to ASIC miners, which are specialized hardware used to mine cryptocurrencies. This means that Ethereum miners can not use ASICs to mine Ether, and must instead use GPUs or CPUs.

The Ethereum network is also designed to be scalable, so that as more users adopt it and more transactions are added, the network can still handle the increased load without slowing down.

However, there is a limit to how many Ether can be created; after a certain point, no more new tokens can be mined. This limit is called the “total supply” of Ether, and it is currently set at 18 million ETH.

Once all 18 million ETH have been mined, no more will be created and mining will cease to be profitable.

This does not mean that the Ethereum network will shut down; it will continue to function as normal, with users able to send and receive transactions as usual. However, there will no longer be an incentive for miners to verify these transactions, as they will no longer be rewarded with Ether.

It is unclear how long it will take for all 18 million ETH to be mined; estimates range from 2-4 years. Once this happens, Ethereum mining will no longer be possible or profitable, and the only way to obtain Ether will be through buying it on exchanges or receiving it as a payment for goods or services.

Ethereum has been one of the most successful cryptocurrencies in recent years, with a large and growing community of users and developers. However, like all good things, it must come to an end eventually.

Mining will cease to be profitable once all the Ether has been mined, but this does not mean that Ethereum will die; it will continue to function as a payment network and platform for decentralized applications even without mining rewards.