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 8624686 Details
Epoch: 404 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 89463351 epoch_slot_no: 298551 block_no: 8624509 slot_leader_id: 4573799 size: 3457 time: 2023-04-09 08:40:42 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x837bd0a27eb797c360b5228aced5d7f7e0175b763c7b16944d2172c5a59bbd7aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1p0r0r8enaa9fv40zc0hm9q92lpwd4glg2lgm7tg67zxaf5v075ssg8328n op_cert: \x0820ee1a1acf41d500abe88a83d127d2ddd70529ccdf95562046141fd8189ae8 op_cert_counter: 14