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 8973741 Details
Epoch: 421 Number of transactions in block: 18 slot_no: 96641781 epoch_slot_no: 132981 block_no: 8973564 slot_leader_id: 4962621 size: 74655 time: 2023-07-01 10:41:12 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x574af386566fd893d5c76c26644cd3148665dd08fa5f98b521b55ef235bb871fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1qs40s2r4qhygpq8va07ntwrpptd7ak6vnpskmqqctdz5d5z9y6ysv6ext5 op_cert: \xa742547a17d44d9dd6af8a605f08ba9da875c7f314d6bc003da326c1892069fc op_cert_counter: 10