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 5657580 Details
Epoch: 262 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 28219576 epoch_slot_no: 398776 block_no: 5657403 slot_leader_id: 4555824 size: 1686 time: 2021-04-30 12:31:07 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x8742cca25a0391fafa6e0aa36436a49f7e7193ff91b60079ecac899a4cb671d3Block Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1wfgru6h86c74e9flucrzupv9f4c4fxq9tvv54rs942vk6hlztu0qcfrpfp op_cert: \xfb46a597666ea4a02fb450480a777b92f9507a08fc9d31283288e8b02ada2282 op_cert_counter: 5