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 8997609 Details
Epoch: 422 Number of transactions in block: 36 slot_no: 97138216 epoch_slot_no: 197416 block_no: 8997432 slot_leader_id: 4679252 size: 80736 time: 2023-07-07 04:35:07 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x9f39f22233aa4a28082bd11ab269c7fbc65029bc557756c14a54d6f9cd285d69Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1u3rp29td29q0txep3j7vvnk3jhpr7rwu8kqwfa34g8ukpqhgppcs8727xq op_cert: \xef4aca5ada707aa08b31d90cc72d8915e82ed85af431bdc9bf272b72e8760dce op_cert_counter: 15