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 8609949 Details
Epoch: 403 Number of transactions in block: 7 slot_no: 89157710 epoch_slot_no: 424910 block_no: 8609772 slot_leader_id: 5873516 size: 20392 time: 2023-04-05 19:46:41 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x43d93915643037a5af39da8d6c48cf7b7a81281de536a388e91ccc2844df02caBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk17nk9vcmu2aqr6d6frzgg7umnd9eldemm6fye8warl47cnw7fkx5sjvxfmh op_cert: \x5e758c19534db36bcc694b24935abf7c8e7647c0ed3697041c5058909e1769fa op_cert_counter: 13