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 8551172 Details
Epoch: 401 Number of transactions in block: 26 slot_no: 87948854 epoch_slot_no: 80054 block_no: 8550995 slot_leader_id: 6008773 size: 44054 time: 2023-03-22 19:59:05 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x9aee3b85e7c65088952e67df5204d66793f0862fd7df9d077ad79f150fe8cdd1Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1uw7lywqf9lc4cncdxcs0nv6pjgt5sslxents6d454s2gwgayvcas2c82h4 op_cert: \xdea1f70607764a7039a1bce315aa74941297118c0e5a7f96e80a9621c8c04809 op_cert_counter: 10