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 5197834 Details
Epoch: 241 Number of transactions in block: 8 slot_no: 18848730 epoch_slot_no: 99930 block_no: 5197657 slot_leader_id: 4628586 size: 5095 time: 2021-01-12 01:30:21 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xe63e2c8033e73c886e923f7a362cff9f63442f252cf1e80254ad847fe9d754dbBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk12k65tnyj7m358l5n65g63jy2rh65yt3xhdkne24fs2j9p5lajzmsdzasa6 op_cert: \x34814f8db1c8f5deb9fd9ec481205e5cc9e9b4232da56048fb600403f3a697e5 op_cert_counter: 7