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 8556652 Details
Epoch: 401 Number of transactions in block: 11 slot_no: 88060844 epoch_slot_no: 192044 block_no: 8556475 slot_leader_id: 5824272 size: 16250 time: 2023-03-24 03:05:35 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xb2ce2d075994eece0abca38b977849e0e740282147143bc6e056362c98f7e40eBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1lqge3g6zp98fyu53kx05ghlq0cftk67f2wdrg2qgrcxxwxlw2hmqz8kprm op_cert: \x3e997ef62bea471b40372b5850627502a58a37719f508a65a713dff15941b360 op_cert_counter: 12