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 8609677 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 42 slot_no: 89152240 epoch_slot_no: 419440 block_no: 8609500 slot_leader_id: 7729284 size: 72763 time: 2023-04-05 18:15:31 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x7fdb98cce78aa1a1077c61c0ea0402231653d87376fba784ab60c5295d864f36Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk14w0zuu0957d4fumkhpzlpslut4plmqhk0ex3ltmcxsq73wd3dv2qws458s op_cert: \x1e9736e064b2d4dc7f7f1a48c3533af04f75a506019aa34de9343b9226c1c146 op_cert_counter: 16