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 8973516 Details
Epoch: 421 Number of transactions in block: 28 slot_no: 96637045 epoch_slot_no: 128245 block_no: 8973339 slot_leader_id: 4581588 size: 62786 time: 2023-07-01 09:22:16 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xa6ebbe7d94620efb1a57d203c669f0af6ff23e3775fbbaabf733738d0d089f9aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1m5tnjq3exhpu8mfcy6rl5xe5jedd8adzx6n5syju3vj8p5yhfels900hls op_cert: \x0589d71828da0f01e763f967b88a0957e22d126327491b04a81e39fd75e8c11c op_cert_counter: 13