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 5253472 Details
Epoch: 243 Number of transactions in block: 2 slot_no: 19966320 epoch_slot_no: 353520 block_no: 5253295 slot_leader_id: 4562285 size: 687 time: 2021-01-24 23:56:51 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x5ec7481316b35aa38bfdb8af4f11321275746069b6b65088eb4f90c39ff8a49bBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1vxkyne4ftwjz4vlla756mlfqrmzwx35mkhk7d993njzmceksfp2q3kp8d4 op_cert: \x6f2f60d921cd55a9b2220e598789c3acb1d1653e7b49957676df824673f9450c op_cert_counter: 5