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 5742321 Details
Epoch: 266 Number of transactions in block: 16 slot_no: 29940117 epoch_slot_no: 391317 block_no: 5742144 slot_leader_id: 4578914 size: 5615 time: 2021-05-20 10:26:48 proto_major: 4 proto_minor: 0 hash: \x7c1e20f94aff3f8ea9d23740f88352485c14751dde500261d5331e8474f6e81aBlock Operator
vrf_key: vrf_vk103gta0pa007l4ffhw96jm6v5hpzyadxz72882ec6jpxz0eg8et2qkcqvkp op_cert: \xe063333c96fa0cade7fe6489b938e5f7fa4b0cd49dd3f8c9289385b7c98f3cc1 op_cert_counter: 4