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 9696868 Details
Epoch: 455 Number of transactions in block: 10 slot_no: 111485787 epoch_slot_no: 288987 block_no: 9696691 slot_leader_id: 5262262 size: 43578 time: 2023-12-20 06:01:18 proto_major: 8 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x59deffdf1f89d2c33ac6fef198d76ef8c23183a699d5971ddd98b4704f667f2bBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk15ftx5gldqydsqt8cwpkjdphnf542j5lcyt8qm7s3cslx8k9au6msa8jdnc op_cert: \x94a11ced975024783bb5d586ca8ca2984e06029e843ab8a0746c634241505b29 op_cert_counter: 12