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 8980601 Details
Epoch: 421 Number of transactions in block: 9 slot_no: 96783210 epoch_slot_no: 274410 block_no: 8980424 slot_leader_id: 5424810 size: 23384 time: 2023-07-03 01:58:21 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xc8ed5d1a70fdb5e357f0e4652c31778295bad6216c8bafc3b0e7f640afa42ac4Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1qagg9aqfyp266n2snz2p7x3f8nq9hfssyauzus9q0eu29d7nlras7v9zmk op_cert: \xa130a26afc5156676d951fa44072907f47b07d86e48c998c2f546e846ea84146 op_cert_counter: 13