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 5597508 Details
Epoch: 260 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 26990781 epoch_slot_no: 33981 block_no: 5597331 slot_leader_id: 4801516 size: 21499 time: 2021-04-16 07:11:12 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x299a90f2dbd6c48b488666aca09a0971b7f13389e17c6f2b7c38b02d80fa6a97Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk152jjh7vhaan2j49hvd6jlhgwxml9q33zeg7m4ws40ate2a4rghascu0f2e op_cert: \x842777053d3d2b34749508fb0157401c05aef48deacb8ea37b45133b33eb2d24 op_cert_counter: 6