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 5597249 Details
Epoch: 260 Number of transactions in block: 12 slot_no: 26985456 epoch_slot_no: 28656 block_no: 5597072 slot_leader_id: 4605678 size: 9794 time: 2021-04-16 05:42:27 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x68f3b35b23450d5dfd836fbaf4722c265769542b35541bf95c971c3b0a8a6bb2Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1gkvk8elqfx8zxmnxsyv6lrcw608rkt55vpmmrknxfmlkkgz0lf8qwvz95a op_cert: \xa71acb00694f4ac8db04af807758cecd4799b431ed38617d29e009f37e92c384 op_cert_counter: 2