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 8257439 Details
Epoch: 387 Number of transactions in block: 8 slot_no: 81893763 epoch_slot_no: 72963 block_no: 8257262 slot_leader_id: 4989634 size: 30153 time: 2023-01-11 18:00:54 proto_major: 7 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x8d13bed5ce38b5424f918cbf007a718a401f0f3b03334979c46e4106ad54c6dcBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk17xppz4t8889f4eqt0cazyrexrfan7za4t5pfeu4hx89xaadvj0jqej033d op_cert: \xbfb1ccfba5a3e4b0ed71f8e31c66979eff1973589957188cc7756ec610717a43 op_cert_counter: 11