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 8172197 Details
Epoch: 383 Number of transactions in block: 7 slot_no: 80139434 epoch_slot_no: 46634 block_no: 8172020 slot_leader_id: 4563878 size: 18582 time: 2022-12-22 10:42:05 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x83a2f7f76145174c66c4c433dab6fc1716c2ea5193d076fed7c3e0a40fc6f5bfBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1sr5n4gdd7p0cjvp7yfnz503nk689kvhmmstj402s4pljylxc5j9szl9epq op_cert: \xa3b668997a9b5334e2f08cd3c35bbe1f0ba3bc71212260099962f53880e3ac75 op_cert_counter: 10