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 8457674 Details
Epoch: 396 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 86030076 epoch_slot_no: 321276 block_no: 8457497 slot_leader_id: 5449692 size: 21532 time: 2023-02-28 14:59:27 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x53fc2520f6c772e31352f2bbbc442d79c34e4974e0044103ff121d401a21ea7cBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1ufvjy4ypv9fh6pcuqcjue2tcu3r93z8z9yz6gw5eyvfa8rxuxeesu5ersl op_cert: \xfe6515b307ffbbaed0892884989776622090f857a003a77d326715e7d2e36492 op_cert_counter: 9