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 5617498 Details
Epoch: 261 Number of transactions in block: 6 slot_no: 27399195 epoch_slot_no: 10395 block_no: 5617321 slot_leader_id: 4983198 size: 4002 time: 2021-04-21 00:38:06 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \xabb99353fa73716f164cc953ca730b78c06b423ef670cc5fcb546463d00c2c4aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1yx6wtxhrp052yghh6g62xzejg5494gmh7nfutzfaahrwl0smr4qsahevee op_cert: \x38f00bbb8836ab40329fb651f6690208bc78f6fe8414a6533a199b07bd3f103b op_cert_counter: 3