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 8596357 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 88878273 epoch_slot_no: 145473 block_no: 8596180 slot_leader_id: 8158224 size: 7769 time: 2023-04-02 14:09:24 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xa8759e361eda3c03b446dcd7ab33ba61d0c0780abf51e41c09c060beb60a06d9Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1kq8upg9wdtg53fmvn9xlrqtyceg8xyra2c48jacj9s9cnjq7j6sssdjfdv op_cert: \x068dbc623299079ceb701d9f1cc0ce332669e024b48209f092dc84d23c0c0c2e op_cert_counter: 2