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 8616657 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 4 slot_no: 89298260 epoch_slot_no: 133460 block_no: 8616480 slot_leader_id: 5151828 size: 13747 time: 2023-04-07 10:49:11 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x1c8b30116c5a46fd5ea75f08f9c21c416a8297eee1fe34c218cba59ee2ac403dBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk15k7lt8kzscha56uz6a5n882qupvu2hpe69jt4p2x35ug4lpj63qswls803 op_cert: \x2f9e3fd5c0e79525222efcdf8133ac3efd68a7c673b02ad9f6723b06d96827cd op_cert_counter: 7