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 5551606 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 18 slot_no: 26038781 epoch_slot_no: 377981 block_no: 5551429 slot_leader_id: 5066575 size: 8960 time: 2021-04-05 06:44:32 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x90ff25fc40ed47cf365297288ebf2a406192ebfd2b37a13454e63fa07d98973eBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1qvtxrpeqpg8vnx9uk37850lz94jaf7fyraxwjsjcrzf37e4lh38sn652uj op_cert: \xf89883fd14a63aa0836dd28d66e28b3333ca32d60897f99efc33ecdf804589a2 op_cert_counter: 3