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 5549805 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 26001528 epoch_slot_no: 340728 block_no: 5549628 slot_leader_id: 4555377 size: 5643 time: 2021-04-04 20:23:39 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x4dd1ae8f768b7772f4971fa70965964abf33bb409a5fb3aad07e8d0435bd48beBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk14thn5n83s7q979n0jt33a9vg80pxl3dn0r2tk3d8lhyu3u02qy2q982sjd op_cert: \x3aa0f76510d3a38127b9469a1ef53521b041d222ecaf06c3347fffe3435237f7 op_cert_counter: 4