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 5542298 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 7 slot_no: 25847704 epoch_slot_no: 186904 block_no: 5542121 slot_leader_id: 4876178 size: 5896 time: 2021-04-03 01:39:55 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xd90d5f2ee822cd1e0ed15a331cf109f16f60a36b925fc96ef02baf710f4de66aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1dw2x4gnzv8kmu0lyzftn7rsu8gw85yfgmpcqjkl8wfvnp8ve6l3q8qm0du op_cert: \x0eb2f406762df32b87a55006ca500aac1ec15e97d0db4a48ff7538e369f2f44b op_cert_counter: 2