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 8974417 Details
Epoch: 421 Number of transactions in block: 27 slot_no: 96656209 epoch_slot_no: 147409 block_no: 8974240 slot_leader_id: 5533634 size: 54461 time: 2023-07-01 14:41:40 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xae319b07c414520ac2983eb10be94ba9d52fa0a6111c91447982768cda6f5c2eBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1ztmhrea2ks3unzh3k97mp7e0m46c7afwxw3tresalv0xu42z0nkq4w9xmk op_cert: \x869b86692e31d82b0739421748579b8ab3a259d424cdba4efd13ec76353103f8 op_cert_counter: 11