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 8517680 Details
Epoch: 399 Number of transactions in block: 34 slot_no: 87259570 epoch_slot_no: 254770 block_no: 8517503 slot_leader_id: 4561262 size: 40172 time: 2023-03-14 20:31:01 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x56b1f30266e9c75722d8954179627c27f548f294da34b28c7dd6de9e9715867bBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk12ak5n6v2m74k2c3ac9hellewm5ssarw363vgh7hc4ujshmdf60rs2furrn op_cert: \x8b3ab6373dafd2289170fa63d9dcdd86a63858334e1e3a33704accaf0e41da86 op_cert_counter: 17