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 5550675 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 18 slot_no: 26019840 epoch_slot_no: 359040 block_no: 5550498 slot_leader_id: 5431536 size: 19461 time: 2021-04-05 01:28:51 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x210c94e678866a9d8f41587f2dccca7550956d107882863b38fe71308582166eBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk16t52ke97yv5w82wn7aufxy09d02kv4gy8pzv207yun7klk8nc28se5xllf op_cert: \x2c9efb3f6334b0e1356d3c2ea5d7ce06395683fbb0523299a0127c9c5a9a97b2 op_cert_counter: 1