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 8616879 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 17 slot_no: 89302783 epoch_slot_no: 137983 block_no: 8616702 slot_leader_id: 5152386 size: 40162 time: 2023-04-07 12:04:34 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xc094dfc6eb634e15982ad748c231bd26330c408c0ced5ed8e2b517a04d6ec37dBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1vr20la7r92sf2j8pgk5mv0l0vaqu2twe7mxqm69hh2zu855pa23s049qnc op_cert: \xb101aed948844983f48ec21ce90e06dab6ea673b55f633a5b3b46e1078506d6d op_cert_counter: 13