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 5742049 Details
Epoch: 266 Number of transactions in block: 5 slot_no: 29934360 epoch_slot_no: 385560 block_no: 5741872 slot_leader_id: 4556102 size: 1691 time: 2021-05-20 08:50:51 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x620e8cd4dcb3a3a46cc5583d6fadaef305a88c8b0e63abe1caaf35c5c016307aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk1w4dsu3xp2v2rqzfz22t906sea38xk29htmzfm950egxa7s65sp9symvnkx op_cert: \x87ed928837a04bacdaa5a0e85d55d379c646cdff1feb3ed1248b06365d235961 op_cert_counter: 5