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 8499738 Details
Epoch: 398 Number of transactions in block: 9 slot_no: 86891342 epoch_slot_no: 318542 block_no: 8499561 slot_leader_id: 5242693 size: 17243 time: 2023-03-10 14:13:53 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x42a600296a9e3396b4f945b685f9e6a15f88c02260813b00de7fbb33e431b47fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk12p22qhv56fn8fremggehy6fcm7rux36sxmmjqgh0e7jxla4z6acsmw2ndt op_cert: \x3fd338a8a0a3498db14b8cbfb3e7c3429545a0ed89c78468d929826c1a7d47c3 op_cert_counter: 13