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 8598586 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 88925219 epoch_slot_no: 192419 block_no: 8598409 slot_leader_id: 4598725 size: 37337 time: 2023-04-03 03:11:50 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xa3e08fc8aeb5b62dbfa36fb24f644adc65774134b058bd98ecf1e5cf155c5f8aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1ezeef5vfdy0nu0lfpkwxf6m7y4sg2m590dtd78zsjts59jskdttq2hyj4w op_cert: \x40677c848881c193ca2baf9b818e7a146915608bfb7c26dc0345afedbf044345 op_cert_counter: 13