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 5580653 Details
Epoch: 259 Number of transactions in block: 20 slot_no: 26636235 epoch_slot_no: 111435 block_no: 5580476 slot_leader_id: 5087069 size: 7470 time: 2021-04-12 04:42:06 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x21739d5c96eb914d26ceffedbf807f39201e0ae555152300d52118a0ee8960cbBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk15cwcpj5jwkdn7dpzcs5vjpcz2pws3pxgwpccdxlyadnl8xk8gjgs0gq96j op_cert: \x78d0940d63069aa3f7f3cf693b848552d0cb237e48bcc7cf4e6215fb476d5ac5 op_cert_counter: 1