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 8998162 Details
Epoch: 422 Number of transactions in block: 34 slot_no: 97148850 epoch_slot_no: 208050 block_no: 8997985 slot_leader_id: 5870905 size: 80238 time: 2023-07-07 07:32:21 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x312bf3728ce585944ae5c8389866979aa45cb6b4578ab8b376dc35c52baa126fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk144ypakf59ccgk3n5nm8eqkfcy27qzrd2df8qmdxdy0rhfpqd37hq7g5wt4 op_cert: \x4194810e5adae425695f41d93fa0d585388a742dc89507588240a9d46357af52 op_cert_counter: 11