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 8618577 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 18 slot_no: 89336781 epoch_slot_no: 171981 block_no: 8618400 slot_leader_id: 4555933 size: 66994 time: 2023-04-07 21:31:12 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xe406ad91c1523250a3762e48ae1f2ad3f0d5420f5954df31f6bfd555e1e9c95fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk149wpky483u54tmnkxhmlr0q0z7faw8relvty6evjrrmx7tg389nsz2awld op_cert: \xa062ac64a0642303b8317acd797e1ee918df266cf02d679115092b9c049f80af op_cert_counter: 17