CTC 1A, 1B, 1C

CTC 1 [STI]

CTC-1A, CTC-1B, and CTC-1C are experimental communications satellites owned and operated by Space Telecommunications Inc. for the decentralized connectivity project developed around the Creditcoin blockchain protocol. The satellites demonstrate space-enabled text messaging and a 5G non-terrestrial network architecture using small satellites in low Earth orbit.

The mission demonstrates space-based messaging services capable of communicating with specialized handheld antennas and, in later phases, directly with standard smartphones. The spacecraft are designed to validate a 5th Generation (5G) Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) using satellites in non-geostationary orbit. The system also tests a decentralized operational model in which the Creditcoin blockchain manages satellite network operations, authorization, and accounting. Within the system, the Creditcoin token functions as the transaction medium supporting network access and operational coordination. The satellites also test inter-satellite communications within a small orbital cluster and form the initial step toward a larger decentralized

The satellites are owned and operated by Space Telecommunications Inc., which holds the regulatory approvals for satellite operations. The network architecture is based on the Spacecoin protocol, which governs the open satellite data network and manages authentication, authorization, and accounting functions across the distributed infrastructure. The CTC-1 mission serves as the first in-orbit validation of the system and precedes planned larger spacecraft starting with the CTC-2 generation.

Each spacecraft is a 16U CubeSat with a launch mass of 21.3 kg. The spacecraft carries two communications subsystems: a spacecraft bus communications system and a demonstration communications payload. The bus communications subsystem includes a two-way UHF radio with deployable antenna and a two-way S-band radio with patch antenna used for spacecraft command and telemetry. The demonstration communications payload consists of a software-defined radio with four transmit and four receive baseband channels that directly generate radio-frequency signals for feeder and service links. The feeder link connects the satellites with ground stations, while the service link connects to end-user devices. The payload also provides an intermediate-frequency interface for frequency up- and down-conversion for inter-satellite links using converters from Reliasat. Two inter-satellite link transceivers operating on separate frequencies allow the central spacecraft in the formation to communicate simultaneously with the other two satellites.

The CTC-1 spacecraft operate in a circular sun-synchronous orbit at approximately 510 km altitude with an inclination of 97.4°. The planned mission duration is two years.

The three satellites were launched together on the rideshare mission SpaceX Transporter-15 rideshare mission aboard a SpaceX Falcon-9 v1.2 (Block 5) launch vehicle from Vandenberg Space Force Base.