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 8609426 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 25 slot_no: 89147125 epoch_slot_no: 414325 block_no: 8609249 slot_leader_id: 4559410 size: 40783 time: 2023-04-05 16:50:16 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x166247454642d0c12564f86729d8f4893e98c578e162efbae5c572af9ec3b97aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1zull6yxhycymv7q0l4lkrzz8r0g7kcm8cghypcajrtvh90dy73wsu3hew2 op_cert: \xf1e9595268deb987ad73c49336d932948989a6617035c3d43b742f897952b5b7 op_cert_counter: 11