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 5356497 Details
Epoch: 248 Number of transactions in block: 11 slot_no: 22043998 epoch_slot_no: 271198 block_no: 5356320 slot_leader_id: 5152386 size: 4752 time: 2021-02-18 01:04:49 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x3d7273fd3a488794e0de6986dbe9423d047b34b6811e699867adda0a0f77c5d4Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1vr20la7r92sf2j8pgk5mv0l0vaqu2twe7mxqm69hh2zu855pa23s049qnc op_cert: \x3df5cefa1c380decc13eb38184877469fd3d5955602ebbfc3970f15a88fd3e3a op_cert_counter: 1