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 5498740 Details
Epoch: 255 Number of transactions in block: 8 slot_no: 24952788 epoch_slot_no: 155988 block_no: 5498563 slot_leader_id: 5152386 size: 2788 time: 2021-03-23 17:04:39 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xa898c3d28756c4ebca67d776fefc483399d56891f7153612256aa2d4bd4fad2dBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1vr20la7r92sf2j8pgk5mv0l0vaqu2twe7mxqm69hh2zu855pa23s049qnc op_cert: \xb101aed948844983f48ec21ce90e06dab6ea673b55f633a5b3b46e1078506d6d op_cert_counter: 4