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 8685342 Details
Epoch: 407 Number of transactions in block: 22 slot_no: 90716232 epoch_slot_no: 255432 block_no: 8685165 slot_leader_id: 4556700 size: 78494 time: 2023-04-23 20:42:03 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xe34897624fd2e217f48a84570f76573381060be05d4e985e8c8ea752cb95e96fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk13h3fs42athsy0qxwg99u9uge7m0ul973exll0ga0g9uhwp3yfssshn9m34 op_cert: \x96ba94803eecd04cf29a9cf2260f00244fbce2688682d0bed7a0c217630d1991 op_cert_counter: 14