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 8978236 Details
Epoch: 421 Number of transactions in block: 35 slot_no: 96734636 epoch_slot_no: 225836 block_no: 8978059 slot_leader_id: 5323914 size: 86559 time: 2023-07-02 12:28:47 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xc3f3e38868f725c8ff5f94425f0269a5abda62e2be0b592eb3e3d54568affe8aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1e6we68f8v6kr04d8xj2vw509patykzr5yzkw4njkmxhas0e85zzsvz9ht6 op_cert: \xe4771ba89e2d929d77a998072701cb670e834889772b422158ebc70e38ec4952 op_cert_counter: 8