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 5200438 Details
Epoch: 241 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 18901175 epoch_slot_no: 152375 block_no: 5200261 slot_leader_id: 4490689 size: 8792 time: 2021-01-12 16:04:26 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xc5e149684e7abee0f188ba3c080ec126f0e7af8476583435f3582c543bf75c9aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1nsd60hkw7uahngavcnq9g95tt2ewh477cwtmtdtnxk70g0cpdfxqknqup3 op_cert: \xb4cc6a6faece66bdc611bf1dd6fe7fe798d44a44318eb36ca355132a8ab54cf0 op_cert_counter: 1