Overview
Blocks are the fundamental building blocks of a blockchain. Each block contains a list of recent transactions, a timestamp, and a cryptographic hash of the previous block, creating a linked chain.
Components
- Header: Contains metadata like the version, previous block hash, Merkle root, and nonce.
- Body: Contains the actual list of transactions included in the block.
Lifecycle
Transactions are broadcast to the network, collected by miners or validators, bundled into a block, and then appended to the chain once consensus is reached.