Terra (LUNA) Blockchain - Crypto Academy / S5W4 - Homework post for pelon53.

It is no more news that there are so many blockchains that have been created over the past decade or So. In recent times, it seems that growth has been quite rapid. Though there are thousands of blockchains in the world today, there are those that still stands out as being exceptional and very attractive. This might be due to a number of factors but foremost among these is how user friendly, profitable and smooth the blockchain operates.

Thankfully, Prof. @pelon23 has given us in the academy some interesting lesson about the structure of the Terra blockchain. I will go ahead to drop my assignment answers here.

What is Terra Station? Explore Terra Station on the web, Download the wallet and connect the wallet to Terra Station. Screenshots required.

The Terra blockchain is a lovely project created by Daniel Shin and Do Kwon with the intention of provoking rapid adoption of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency by giving prominence to price stability and usability.

Terra was initiated in January 2018. The mainnet was officially launched in April 2019. By September 2021, Terra has stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar, South Korean won, Mongolian tugrik and the International Monetary Fund's Special Drawing Rights basket. Terra is noted to be the fifth-largest smart contract platform by total value locked (TVL) which is at $11.87 billion.

The platform has experienced much success because of its higher stability through and well developed mechanism. Also, affiliations with other firms and payment platforms have boosted its reputation. The Terra Alliance group has also canvassed much support for the project by advocating for the adoption of Terra.

TERRA STATION

Terra Station is the name of the decentralized wallet created for the Terra blockchain. Like most other wallets, Terra station is a store for keeping the tokens connected and owned by this blockchain. In this wallet, a user can keep his tokens especially those that are compatible with the blockchain.

Here, it is not just about storing tokens, this wallet can interface with other DeFi projects and DApps through which way other actions can be taken and functionalities accessed. The concept of earning and investing especially promoted by DeFis is very prominent with the Terra station because through connecting this wallet with these platforms, a user can participate in staking, farming, governance as so many other activities.

As Terra blockchain employs proof of stake consensus mechanism, the portion of tokens held by a user will imply more power and ability to interact conveniently, profitably and actively in the blockchain ecosystem as more opportunities are opened to holders. Thus, the Terra station serves as a tool which brings the user in connection with the blockchain ecosystem.

• Terra Station Download

Since one cannot really explore the web page of Terra station without having a connection,

I had to first download the wallet in my device and connect it accordingly.

So I went to my app playstore and in the search bar, I typed in the name of the wallet.

The icon of the wallet was displayed and I went ahead to click on it. The install button was displayed which I clicked.

After the app had been downloaded successfully, I tapped the open button which took me to the app home page.

This is the wallet app showing on my desktop.

On opening the app, I was given a welcome message.

Other brief introduction of the wallet followed then I landed in the get started page from where I could explore the wallet.

I was given options to either recover a wallet or create a new one. Since I had no previous wallet address, I picked the create wallet option.

I went through the process of registration for the wallet. I picked a wallet name and password. I was then given wallet keys which I was adviced to write down and store away safely.

I was then asked to identify some of the keys which I did and afterwards my wallet was created successfully.

All these processes could not be captured because of security reasons. My wallet opened to show that I had no tokens stored in it.

• Connection

If one is yet to connect a wallet, there is a wallet connection button at the top of the page.

Tapping this button, a list is several options are given.

One can connect with a legder, download the Terra Station or use the Terra Station Mobile option.

If the user is opening the web page on a desktop, clicking the Terra mobile option would bring out a scanning code. But with if the site is opened on mobile, the Terra Station app would be launched.

It will show that the wallet is getting ready to connect.

Thereafter, I was asked to allow the web page to connect with my wallet as it was requesting connection, I tapped allow.

It was shown that the wallet has been connected successfully and I should return to the web page to continue in exploring the site.

I landed on the home page of the Terra Station with the warning nite that I had no assets in it so no transactions could be processed.

Then the wallet created successfully. I then went to the wallet space on the browser and found this display.

• Exploration of Terra Station

Since I was able to successfully create a wallet and connect it to the web page, I moved on to explore the web page of Terra. I first landed on the home page which was the dashboard.

From here, I could locate a menu on the top right hand corner which had a list of all the features of the site.

DASHBOARD

This is the landing location once a user visits the site. Here there are some key details displayed. There is the current price of the native token of the platform, the transaction volume, the staking ratio, the number of Luna tokens issued so far, the tax rate, the community pool, the staking return, tax return and the total number of accounts that have been created.

WALLET

This is where assets of a user are stored and the balances are displayed. As can be imagined, my wallet had no deposits or assets. Both the UST and Luna balances were in zeros.

NFT

A user can secure his NFT in this wallet as well. With this feature, a user can add a non-fungible token. There is also some NFT marketplaces like RANDOM EARTH and NOWHERE listed in this section. CW721 tokens are accepted here.

HISTORY

This is just what it is, history. It gives a records of transactions and activities carried out by the owner of the wallet on the platform. As I was yet to execute any transactions, my history section showed no transaction history. I believe here, a list it transaction hash would have been listed if there were any.

STAKING

This is a section of the platform that shows how much of a user's assets have been delegated to the ecosystem as support and as investment.

There is a list of many staking options and pools with the unique voting power they have, the validator commission attached, the uptime and the self delegation percentage.

The staking pools are listed under the heading moniker which represents the different names tag they bear. A user can find his balance that is available for delegation, the unit of assets that have been delegated, the assets not delegated and the delegation rewards.

SWAP

At the swap interface, exchange of one token for another is carried. It is simply about giving up one token for another depending on the users needs and choice. A user only needs to select the required token, type in the units to be exchanged and proceed to swap them at the stipulated rates. A user can even swap multiple coins on Terra Station.

GOVERNANCE

As the word has already shown, this section is concerned with how the ecosystem is run, managed and administratered. It is about the protocol and system used in regulating the activities taking place on the platform. This section has different aspects.

It has the Voting section where there there are current proposals that have been put up for voting. These proposals are displayed here along with the voting progress and the the deadline stipulated for the voting to end.

The date that the proposal was submitted is also shown here. The minimum amount of deposited asset (staked) that qualifies a user to vote is also stated in this case it is 50 Luna.

Deposit is the section where users could make use of their holdings and assets to sponsor proposals. Sufficiently supported proposals are then submitted for voting. Ability to support a proposal is proportional to the users holdings and staking power.

Passed is where proposals that had been put up for voting and have been approved are listed.

Rejected section shows those proposals that were not passed but we're disapproved by the voting community.

CONTRACT

In the contract section, one can adopt any of the contracts to build and deploy a DApp. Here, the contract addresses and codes are shown as well.

There is an option to either create a contract or upload one to the platform. There is a list if already created or uploaded contracts. An authorized user can make a query of thesw contracts of interact with them.

All the screenshots in this question are from the web page of the Terra Wallet and the Terra Wallet mobile app.

Explain Anchor Protocol, explore the application and connect the Terra Station wallet. Show screenshots.

ANCHOR PROTOCOL

The Terra blockchain is a whole ecosystem of its own incorporating several projects and platforms built through smart contracts and attached to the blockchain. Among the numerous such project is the Anchor Protocol.

This is a decentralized finance platforms created to offer earning means to users. Users and investors can exploit the services offered here to generate substantial income for themselves.

At the moment, the need to obtain crytopcurrency loans is increasing peculiar nature of some coins and tokens and the specific use cases that some of these are better suited for than others.

This is similar to the yield farming features of other DeFis like Yearn Finance. It uses a collateralization technique to give out loans and obtain interest. Here, assets can be lend and borrowed and then difference in rates constitutes revenue to the system and to the participants.

Users can decide to be lenders to the platform. This they do by locking up a portion of their asset. This portion is used to service loans collected by other users who are the borrowers. The interest charged and realized from these loans over the period that the assets are locked up are shared among the lenders accordingly to the proportion if their assets contributed.

Connecting Terra Station

As Anchor Protocol is a project in the Terra blockchain, it therefore means that that blockchain's wallet, the Terra Station is very compatible and patchable to the DeFi.

So, to connect the wallet, I visited the Anchor Protocol official site.

I located and clicked on the menu button at the top right hand corner of the page.

The option webApp was displayed. This I clicked.

From there, I saw the option to connect wallet and it had the incription open Terra Station Mobile. I clicked on this.

It opened my wallet area and I was informed that Anchor is requesting to connect to my wallet and I tapped the allow button.

The next interface showed that I had succeeded in connecting the wallet.

I was asked to return to the web page through my browser to continue in accessing the features.

Going back, I tapped on the wallet space and it showed my wallet address and other details that confirmed the connection.

• Exploration of Anchor Protocol

In this decentralized application, there are some nice features built into it. This features aid the facilitate the various actions and services that are carried out in the platform. Some of these include:

DASHBOARD

This is like the primary page of the platform. Here is where a user first reach before proceeding to the other features and pages. This has a rundown of major details and information concerning the platform.

Here, important data like the total locked value which was 7,755,829,190UST, the total value of collateral of $4,472,276,543, the total borrowing, yield reserve at 78,939,086UST, total deposit, total circulating supply of the token which stood at 182,056,028 ANC, the native token price and so much more.

MY PAGE

This is where the assets of a user are displayed. The balances of the various available tokens are shown. The value of assets deposited, staked farmed, borrowed, held or delegated to governance are all displayed here to see. Going down, the earned rewards of a user through his various engagement in the platform can also be seen.

EARN

As Anchor Protocol facilitates lending and borrowing, this is the part where a user can allow his assets to be used to provide loans a for others while he earns interest. Here, a user can deposit his assets that is lend them to the platform.

The asset lend will be given to others who borrow. The interest rate is specified in this section also. Depending on the amount of asset deposited, the expected interest can also be seen here. There are buttons for depositing assets and withdrawing of interest. This is like investing in the platform and waiting for returns.

BORROW

A user can be in need of a particular token for a particular purpose and may not need to buy it in totality. Thus, might want to take a loan for some time. This is the space for getting such coins or tokens by borrowing.

The value of assets here is contributed by other users who lend their assets to the platform. The user who wishes to borrow or get a loan will have to deposit a unit of valuable assets as collateral.

The interest rate is stated here as well as the balances of borrowed assets and collateral value. Using the repay button, a user can pay back an initial loan gotten. There is a list of accepted collaterals at the bottom of the page.

BOND

There is a tokenized representations of bonded PoS assets called bAsset. It in this section that a user can create this kind of asset as well as claim interest for the ones already bonded. These assets have to be minted. A user may also have to burn other assets in order to get this ones.

GOVERN

Through this interface a user can make use of his asset holdings to take part in governance activities by staking his token to give him voting power and influence on the platform.

There are special asset classes that are designated as governance tokens, so the user will have to acquire these to be able to take participate.

There is a list of polls concerning the platform that are listed here. A user can join one of the current forum or create a poll.

Here, there is a document that gives directives and information about how to operate in the governance.

As the governance is concerned with providing exchange liquidity for ANC, staking ANC, and creating & voting on Anchor governance proposals, this document page details all the information concerning these aspects.

All screenshots in the question above were taken from the official page of Anchor Protocol and Terra Station Mobile app.

Explain Mirror Protocol, connect Terra Station and explore the Mirror Protocol application. Show screenshots.

MIRROR PROTOCOL

This is yet another wonderful product on the Terra ecosystem. This is a medium with which users can create their own synthetic assets which are stable coins.

Stable coins are blockchain assets that less volatile due to the stability mechanism established which by backing up the coins with either a viable fiat currency like the US Dollars or a real world asset like gold. These stable coins have their prices pegged to these assets such that their prices do not fluctuate farther than the value of pegged asset.

The stable coins are called synthetic assets because they mimic the real world assets.The name of the platform being mirror is just to reflect the idea of the created assets copying or mirroring the real world assets. The stable coins are the blockchain versions of the assets are pegged to. They act like the virtual substitutes.

This is a synthetic assets protocol built also on Terraform Labs. There is a very high level of decentralization developed into the system with on-chain treasury and code changes governed by holders of the MIR token.

Connecting Terra Station

To connect this wallet to the Mirror Protocol, I first visited the official page of the project.

There I clicked the first of the two links listed which was to grant me access to the web app.

I reached the web app an I found the connect button at the top right hand corner.

I clicked on this button and a an option to connect to a wallet was given.

Here, it was the Terra Station Mobile that came out as wallet choice.

I clicked it and it took me to the space where I was to proceed with the connection to the Terra Station Mobile.

I was moved to the Terra Station Mobile app which informed me that Mirror was requesting connection with my wallet. I tapped on allow and the process went ahead.

The connection was done and I was asked to return to my browser and continue.

It was shown that the wallet was connected.

Exploring Mirror Protocol

The Mirror Protocol has some feature which is used to support the activities on the platform. This include:

TRADE

This is the first part that a user lands on when on the web page. Here, different assets are listed along with their prices. A user can trade any of these with their stable coins (UST).

BORROW

If a user wishes to get a loan of a token, he can make use of this option. Here, assets are given along with their oracle price which are in the value of the stablecoins.

FARM

A user who wishes to invest his assets can deposit it into the farm the be used as lending capital for loans. This asset deposited attract interest based on the value.

Interest rates are varied depending on the asset pair chosen. Locking up assets is a form of putting it up for others to borrow it through the platform and rewards are gotten at the end of the loan deal.

GOVERN

This is where administrative decisions are taken. Users delegate tokens for governance. By staking tokens in the governance, a user is given access to sponsor proposals, vote on decisions and take part in polls.

The governance token for Mirror Protocol is the MIR and the value held by a user shows how much stake such a user owns. In the space, the total community pool as well as the total staked assets are given. There is a highlight of the different proposals on the platform given below.

MY PAGE

This simply the display of a user's equity on the platform. The user's total asset value and also the total rewards earned are shown here. From their point, sending tokens to other users is also possible. The price of the MIR token is also shown here.

All the screenshots in this question were take from the Mirror Protocol web page and the Terra Station Mobile app.

What is the Terra bridge? Explain, show screenshots.

TERRA BRIDGE

This is another wonderful software that is incorporated into the Terra blockchain ecosystem. It is a product developed from the Terra lab.

This particular blockchain has actually demonstrated so much sophistication and advancement. Just as the name implies, Terra Bridge is software tool used to patch or synchronize two separate blockchains together.

It is used to link up with other blockchains through which, data as well as assets can be shared and transfered.

This decentralized application serve as a literal bride by which a user can cross from one blockchain to another. It facilitates the linking of blockchains and making them to be compatible therefore have interaction with each other.

Initially, there was no connection possible between distinct blockchains.

The native tokens from one blockchain could not be transferred or operated on another blockchain, most blockchains were incompatible. Even at present most of them are still incompatible.

The Terra Bridge is thus a very functional tool as it makes the linkage between two separate blockchains to be possible and as such there can now be inter-chain activities and transactions.

In this case of Terra Bridge, tool helps to create a connection between the Terra blockchain and Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain and Harmony chains. As it is, tokens that are created on the listed blockchains can be used interchangeably.

This is a high level of interoperability that is lacking very well in blockchain world. With this interoperability, users are not limited or confined to execute transactions with their Terra tokens only in the Terra ecosystem.

Now, they can as well explore their options with within Ethereum, Binance ans Harmony ecosystems as well using the Terra Bridge to patch them through and create a channel of connection.
These are the wallet options that can be interlinked using this tool:

• Terra Station Extension
• MetaMask
• CoinBase
• Trustwallet
• Binance Chain Wallet

How the Terra Bridge Works

Here, there it is possible to conduct cross-chain transfer of tokens which are supported by Shuttle like Terra native tokens, mAssets and other Terra ecosystem tokens. All these can be transferred to the supported blockchain networks or Ethereum and BSC.

Like the normal bridges we have which connects two points on land either across a river or a deep depression.

The Terra Bridge functions as a pathway which takes a user across restrictions and inconsistencies of the other blockchain networks so that a user can have access and operate between the joined blockchains.

The Terra Bridge first demands wallet connection.

After the connection a user selects which of the blockchains he wishes to connect with.

When the blockchain is connected, the list of compatible wallets are given and a user can choose the required one.

After this, a list of assets in the wallet are displayed and a user can pick the specific asset.

The user should input the details of the transfer.

The amount to transfer, the receiving wallet address. He can then proceed by picking the next option.

Then move ahead to confirm the transaction, check the details of transfer and authenticate it by signing it.

Connecting Wallet

To be able to connect a wallet, I first went to the site of the Terra Bridge.

Here I was able to find connect wallet at the top right hand corner of the page.

I clicked on it and the option of Terra Station Extension and Terra Station Mobile were shown. I tapped on the mobile option.

I was taken to the mobile app. The information here was that Terra Bridge was requesting to connect to my wallet. I went ahead by clicking on allow.

The wallet was connected though it was shown that it was empty as the wallet did not hold any coins.

I was asked to return to the web page on my browser to continue.

I went back and found that the connection was indicated on the page.

All screenshots in the question above are from the Terra Bridge Web Page and Terra Station Mobile app.

Explain how it works and what the Terra Stablecoin are.

Terra Stablecoins

Terra blockchain has a high reputation for its stable coins offerings and creation. With the challenge of price fluctuations with cryptocurrencies, there is serious desire by people to have tokens that are less volatile.

Stablecoins refer to smart contract-enabled cryptographic representation of fiat currencies (that is normal mainstream currencies) created to check the volatility issues commonly experienced with virtual currencies.

Terra stablecoins are algorithmic stablecoins in their nature. This means that the protocol is designed to achieve price stability by employing some algorithms. The Terra stablecoins are coins created to have the price of fiat currencies by pegging them at a ratio of 1:1.

How Terra Stablecoins Work

Terra’s stablecoins ensure seamless transactions and enjoyes similar stability of fiat currencies. Terra blockchain make use of its native LUNA as a utility and governance coin to operate the collateralizing mechanisms whick is used as backing and security for the price stability of the stablecoins.

In this system, the laws of demand and supply are used to create stability and balance and maintain the price of the stablecoins. The mechanism is achieved through burning and minting of the assets depending on the need. For this reason, the supply of the native LUNA coin is elastic that is, it is liable to changes.

Balance in infused into the blockchain ecosystem by using specialized algorithmic spending and stablecoins usage data gathered directly from the Terra blockchain. This is done by adjusting and altering the supply of LUNA coin and rebalancing it.

The stablecoins coins keep their one-to-one peg through an algorithm and systematically programmed mechanism that automatically adjusts stablecoins supply based on market situation and how much demand is present. By an incentive technique LUNA holders, swaping of LUNA and stablecoins are done at profitable exchange rates.

This attracts users to carry out the swap whenever the need arises. This interchanging depending on which token is swapped for which can expand or contract the stablecoin supply to meet up with the demand and thus affect the price.

At times when transaction volume across Terra’s large network of payment service providers increases, the result will be that the overall demand for TerraUSD (and other stablecoins like TerraJPY, TerraGBP, TerraCNY) will expand as well. This menas that the blockchain Terra must algorithmically send out new LUNA coins by giving out swapping incentive to maintain the price stability.

On the contrary, when the demand for the demand for the coins are much lesser, the network will automatically buy back more LUNA and burn the excess quantity to push the price up.

Some stablecoins that can be found on the Terra blockchain ecosystem include:

• TerraKRW (KRT)
• TerraUSD (UST)
• TerraJPY
• TerraCNY
• TerraEUR
• TerraGBP
• TerraSDR

You have 1,500 USD and you want to transform it into UST. Explain in detail and take the price of the updated LUNA token.

To conduct this conversion and calculations, 1500 USD will have to be converted first to LUNA. Then the LUNA will be swapped for the stablecoin UST.

At present the price of LUNA is $70.15.

Source

At this price, I will have 150/70.15 = 21.383 LUNA.

Source

This is shown in the conversion screenshot below.

To have the UST the LUNA tokens are burned.
Also the conversion of LUNA to UST is at 1 UST = 0.014440 LUNA

Thus 21.383 will give
21.383/0.014440
= 1480.82 UST.

Thus, $1500 is equivalent to 1480.82 which is almost equal when taking into consideration swap charges and fees.

Now you have those 1,500 USD and you want to make a profit, since 1 UST = 1.07 USD. Explain in detail and take the price of the updated LUNA token.

In this case that demand has caused the value of UST to climb to 1.07 USD. It means that $1500 USD will be : 1500×1.07
= 1605.

Normally, on exchanges and swap sites, 1USD = I UST.
USD to LUNA= 1500/70.15 ( updated price of LUNA)
=21.383

Converting this to UST, we have 1480.82 UST. This is value at 1USD to 1 UST.

For UST price of 1.07
The profit will be 1480.82 × 1.07
=1580.48.

The profit is 1580.48-1500
= 80.48 USD in profit.

Thus, at 1500 USD, I was able to have 1605 USD. That is an extra 105 USD.

CONCLUSION

It would be a disservice to technological advancement if the achievement of the Terra blockchain is not highlighted. In terms of being accessible, applicable and functional, this is one well planned blockchain network.

It is no surprise that South Korea as well as other international firms are integrating the tokens of their project as a payment system. This project is well positioned. It has sufficient use cases. It protocol and services offer countless opportunities to users. Almost every finance can be done here.

Terra blockchain ecosystem is very broad. This broadness has quite remarkable because of the features that have been built in.

With the Terra Station, users can explore several options in the ecosystem and be able to execute various actions. The Terra bride has actually bridged the gap between distinct blockchains. Thiis blockchain has gone ahead to address the problem of incompatibility and has fostered strong interoperability.

The development of the Anchor and Mirror protocols has given Terra added advantages over other blockchains.

Investment opportunities are surplus with the Anchor Protocol. User can obtain bountiful rewards by just interacting with the platform. The Mirror protocol goes ahead to bring in a high level of stability by the minting of synthetic assets in form of multiple stable coins.

Infact Terra blockchain even has the International Monetary Fund’s TerraSDR for over a variety of global marketplaces, this is amazing. The native coin, LUNA is obviously not doing badly in terms of adoption and performance.

On the whole, Terra blockchain looks very formidable and secured for anyone to consider as an investment vehicle. It is great that Prof. @pelon53 has brought this wonderful lesson to us.