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 5355686 Details
Epoch: 248 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 22026968 epoch_slot_no: 254168 block_no: 5355509 slot_leader_id: 5263404 size: 7744 time: 2021-02-17 20:20:59 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x441c49fc01914020760a6d549ae38efd1a098f9b505db0bcbc879fb7413e1e8aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1cu9waer74yfxp29rlp947kyavq0r6ql2lruarlwlelg7hwc84xjs8s25gd op_cert: \x5ff7e4c813b239ed895553d971c940c09cc34f89c286986a3632214a4f5b0ef2 op_cert_counter: 0