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 5173494 Details
Epoch: 240 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 18355783 epoch_slot_no: 38983 block_no: 5173317 slot_leader_id: 5086735 size: 12901 time: 2021-01-06 08:34:34 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x486a851ad949cce06de72bcfb88e94349ac7dd80e10ac758b5581d471b4b7956Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1xxu3xsjr56lrr6lj656xw2e8r9rckwxjpxg6gaetq7cnvpn89r0qryw4tz op_cert: \x53571a2cb7d41b8516457c2772651329e5da441473ae76a46ec10409c17f13eb op_cert_counter: 1