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 8589605 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 40 slot_no: 88737840 epoch_slot_no: 5040 block_no: 8589428 slot_leader_id: 5080696 size: 79457 time: 2023-03-31 23:08:51 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xa4d7fbac88dcf81f9c165bafcdeb396c698f8a3ea1f63c42b6281dbe36c38ec0Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk18s6zlh303m8q4cs2rh9mk2akd79jzufrngmjexmqryl4j5q88mjsmjtgke op_cert: \x52bd1fc84d214c8a293f7347fe9f5b1419091888fe528157f2f1aa8cfb28dc13 op_cert_counter: 10