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 8609117 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 89141029 epoch_slot_no: 408229 block_no: 8608940 slot_leader_id: 5570484 size: 29018 time: 2023-04-05 15:08:40 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x3684c349d17073396326dd4b77745301bb5ee3ebec54d10dca4531e1bb43e6cbBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk18sd0nzu96fr4x9hjaynpfkxng58fmq4sftw8zqply0qpympj57ssc8vqkj op_cert: \x2b9dc7e8472e378bbd395f8ca6dd5109d3b6acee958f3635e88691aed19a3d0a op_cert_counter: 8