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 5540320 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 25806996 epoch_slot_no: 146196 block_no: 5540143 slot_leader_id: 5281457 size: 5269 time: 2021-04-02 14:21:27 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x21cf6727d3ab5aeda19a9e6983a91f3deb018dd9e7c4cf5dcbedf73190b4101fBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1zej2cp22hvyndrd97pejcxw7ekcpz84cxhqd9nk4a8t535fgx3xs9x4ayc op_cert: \x944f513bcb494f146cb2741811dd0415f2c469d4e6388547d62bce32a3481ba2 op_cert_counter: 0