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 8998337 Details
Epoch: 422 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 97152440 epoch_slot_no: 211640 block_no: 8998160 slot_leader_id: 4555619 size: 17311 time: 2023-07-07 08:32:11 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xc0d426a1690ed7356fcff96484db8bc8d70b55e28cd9704a981d080f94d0a75fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1lqtj7dj5hdqdfe07fzydp5rdqed88ktesuvlgljqwudqr3dlt99swz8kz2 op_cert: \x8aa24edc3bfe9f0ea7ee5e01e5fc8e4a02b21d51abaa5d734256e61e289db42d op_cert_counter: 17