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 5618351 Details
Epoch: 261 Number of transactions in block: 9 slot_no: 27416963 epoch_slot_no: 28163 block_no: 5618174 slot_leader_id: 5507686 size: 3518 time: 2021-04-21 05:34:14 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x6fb82b12428efc0e647852cfd2800a19d80237744916dca926241f29d19bebb3Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1kzhq8xj03l7u669l3r67qplsz4ydh0quj0yphzrnumksqrtknp8sd2r470 op_cert: \x8c5c03356e60e2ca1512e935b8ae2d0b099704d833f5cef8c2849fc2ec80c6c3 op_cert_counter: 0