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 8616517 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 9 slot_no: 89295699 epoch_slot_no: 130899 block_no: 8616340 slot_leader_id: 7046900 size: 17071 time: 2023-04-07 10:06:30 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xaf41ae26b82918862ba0bf6aab810b842d614f9450279599b25a725c93e8ef9cBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk197w95j9alkwt8l4g7xkccknhn4pqwx65c5saxnn5ej3cpmps72msgpw69d op_cert: \x80096d88bbfdbdb58829fa1b55e1ffb30cc44b986f815772ed9c42965eb14358 op_cert_counter: 1659973012