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 8494550 Details
Epoch: 398 Number of transactions in block: 2 slot_no: 86786894 epoch_slot_no: 214094 block_no: 8494373 slot_leader_id: 4558666 size: 1457 time: 2023-03-09 09:13:05 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x317e4230e139568096595aeab88008ec1035c51b66cf847b47c4b01f9386fb4aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1s3hssxtpjdjc9amqn9wqn6dfyzujsv8jrk6pkl4esfpp99v48ujsflsn70 op_cert: \x402e9fb1bd352a92cca4af785433a6f7d9942c92b3e3c67051fad2b22316968b op_cert_counter: 13