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 5540940 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 22 slot_no: 25819773 epoch_slot_no: 158973 block_no: 5540763 slot_leader_id: 4577075 size: 9561 time: 2021-04-02 17:54:24 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x76d4e807defcb0eca6b1bca5e0c2b11ce2db9c01db41b505c9ecb07e887b62d5Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1g0u0sks02utexc0scc5ywlmr4jw2hw2dkgq69hhpg7drz4u38qssd0kn3w op_cert: \x72585454891c2f2eeec8488fa99eff35f19ba26ae3f2e82a8949174d29371b99 op_cert_counter: 5