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 8490372 Details
Epoch: 398 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 86701144 epoch_slot_no: 128344 block_no: 8490195 slot_leader_id: 4578914 size: 26907 time: 2023-03-08 09:23:55 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x2313299621b0498c3b5e5947c421b6f9bc43c7bbabed430b402efb08374d838aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk103gta0pa007l4ffhw96jm6v5hpzyadxz72882ec6jpxz0eg8et2qkcqvkp op_cert: \xa92a561efc4a6deb65790928045dfd9a25096bd15f56f2a7c89c7f9b5c0f533b op_cert_counter: 12