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 8608973 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 18 slot_no: 89138132 epoch_slot_no: 405332 block_no: 8608796 slot_leader_id: 4988669 size: 19246 time: 2023-04-05 14:20:23 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x1a6004890d28dd37933415b7f0873477f67fbbebd4514d51ac19b683d8f7b11cBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1m40jn5let0xl39vk68gcnayehe8xh2uuk3slrfdw2e94m2fy45eq8zmxqe op_cert: \x43a62c2cdf39a527b550feabc609b45a50f46e364adbdd27bfa5c62e82f83e2b op_cert_counter: 11