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 8557041 Details
Epoch: 401 Number of transactions in block: 3 slot_no: 88068568 epoch_slot_no: 199768 block_no: 8556864 slot_leader_id: 5722967 size: 6753 time: 2023-03-24 05:14:19 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x03c32695b4345e39d27ab1eceb985299d5c9ceeea07f7a62464e9663821cf52bBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk13jt50ukdkwer5uph8wfnrwq048n0yw0pxwwmqqqwt9jmwheld9sqwp8wj2 op_cert: \x6002bcdc41cce42e804c6807bf2b8f7261b1ebba4e1cf8b452a5d2351bd89fe1 op_cert_counter: 11