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 8261673 Details
Epoch: 387 Number of transactions in block: 3 slot_no: 81979776 epoch_slot_no: 158976 block_no: 8261496 slot_leader_id: 5659787 size: 3335 time: 2023-01-12 17:54:27 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x68b80681e2d0d7559a23ebb169783db2db7d92dc6e491df632beadedff74766eBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1xrvfu67crxveeea49knzhf48ff9swu5fyqmtcny9st4pqlwffwnqtrhmud op_cert: \x28bb07ef9cab9a96700c68322fa8e72e7eef3c5219245af3f388fd062472cb09 op_cert_counter: 5