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 8616852 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 21 slot_no: 89302193 epoch_slot_no: 137393 block_no: 8616675 slot_leader_id: 5442898 size: 44884 time: 2023-04-07 11:54:44 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x8cbe47c0e2b7325b47f53d11088ee15629f89442a1e13302e673ffca17a1428aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk18ys466yz8u65l6nr33r96pg5rjmj0gt7c5dx27hjk3g2t2vatrjq78mdga op_cert: \xffbbe853f39f4d08f3cc13a6e5eddfe9a293719793962dd933d513198aa78ab6 op_cert_counter: 17