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 8553623 Details
Epoch: 401 Number of transactions in block: 17 slot_no: 87998783 epoch_slot_no: 129983 block_no: 8553446 slot_leader_id: 5609069 size: 36502 time: 2023-03-23 09:51:14 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x663df62bce01c62071596f9bb690b6a50726108efa211f308592d0d491988e7aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1umc4uaql3pps827tkzzwdzgrug0482utuya77f2xvn6497xye8uqflwjxz op_cert: \xf7a7a01c771232f66a586c09c7411426f604bd1785a3a696c692511e1bbe3838 op_cert_counter: 9