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 5440132 Details
Epoch: 252 Number of transactions in block: 9 slot_no: 23743523 epoch_slot_no: 242723 block_no: 5439955 slot_leader_id: 5072359 size: 3892 time: 2021-03-09 17:10:14 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x8c9ce4a9cae9c6f8d38620f323d0c4448aa360de930b9b009bf542420b2ebd8dBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1e76qra8229ys543mma5ncfpu0ufv0x7sss9y9l5gn0qm92zyq57stvjguy op_cert: \x729e0d8429979a5db4515a4e40052c980d54ee8bec25e00f2642d031961c4e1a op_cert_counter: 9