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 5545874 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 25920836 epoch_slot_no: 260036 block_no: 5545697 slot_leader_id: 5385987 size: 7076 time: 2021-04-03 21:58:47 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x596e72be2af11b3790edfd7ad86d74c64a416b57f107207a9f2039719dcd960cBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk170ymrwqcz6nxkvtd8wdm4quj9rejfca8hxu0gxyn9kedcg8se58qe4hxnc op_cert: \xb0403c3524ceca37328809b712f7073f8e47be1210d375d8276f374866f25039 op_cert_counter: 0