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 5553683 Details
Epoch: 257 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 26083342 epoch_slot_no: 422542 block_no: 5553506 slot_leader_id: 4556700 size: 9681 time: 2021-04-05 19:07:13 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xf31b812e74261e32dd267a81c73bb9e89cb06e5d4b6129fd578909003bd46f5aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk13h3fs42athsy0qxwg99u9uge7m0ul973exll0ga0g9uhwp3yfssshn9m34 op_cert: \x0684304d86ef8fe05fcacd8fb41f7face39b2a61cae1fc90d8a707963e9324d8 op_cert_counter: 3