A Cardano block is a collection of transactions that are grouped together and verified as a unit. It's similar to a page in a ledger. Each block contains a hash, which is a unique cryptographic code that identifies the block and its contents. Once a block is created, it's added to the blockchain, which is a public, distributed database. This process is known as block production. The creation of new blocks is carried out by staking pools, which are groups of individuals who contribute their ADA to secure the network. Blocks play a crucial role in the Cardano network by recording transactions, ensuring security, and providing a historical record.
Block 8138349 Details
Epoch: 381 Number of transactions in block: 26 slot_no: 79447290 epoch_slot_no: 218490 block_no: 8138172 slot_leader_id: 4589362 size: 68835 time: 2022-12-14 10:26:21 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x31217c11dda91303545ced7f5a22f0ccb5062ace46dfb844ad7208c1fa5cdb1aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk14vcr7r0n6z8tzxvk8xuqagmngcyqg80vdp8m477awcjxfdc0fgysvl93s3 op_cert: \x5bf4d46560e973309fc77a924861690a5aee20ac0a4c3f1f46feaa600455bb57 op_cert_counter: 19