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 8543434 Details
Epoch: 400 Number of transactions in block: 3 slot_no: 87788146 epoch_slot_no: 351346 block_no: 8543257 slot_leader_id: 4577713 size: 4557 time: 2023-03-20 23:20:37 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x4a060637b0fb53e94bc8d6cfa5c65067ed70ea385ce752064dca0609a5a6d08dBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1qwu8m2lsqldzdg4m8ypaj5w2sdamla6p0t2kvk0amzfpc5v7ednsvfcj2p op_cert: \xb9610823890d410aebd76f9157b7b612642d99c989ff093f73dfc7590c39cdaf op_cert_counter: 12