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 8599474 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 88944142 epoch_slot_no: 211342 block_no: 8599297 slot_leader_id: 4577713 size: 79875 time: 2023-04-03 08:27:13 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x45a829879f57fe68f3315041ff74c1f762a866e8ddf8c68413113fe6b70e73cdBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1qwu8m2lsqldzdg4m8ypaj5w2sdamla6p0t2kvk0amzfpc5v7ednsvfcj2p op_cert: \xb9610823890d410aebd76f9157b7b612642d99c989ff093f73dfc7590c39cdaf op_cert_counter: 12