Introduction

The world of Crypto can seem like a very technical and confusing place to anyone who does not have specialist knowledge. At least that’s how I felt when I started learning about it. Everyone I spoke to, and everything I read used technical language I didn’t understand which made me feel like I wouldn’t be able to learn. That is why I have created this website to help everyday people understand a little more about cryptocurrencies, in particular  ‘Satoshis’ (or Sats for short). I am not a financial adviser and the information on this website is based on my own personal research. As with any investment, I would strongly recommend anyone hoping to invest in Crypto to do their own research to gain a good understanding of both the risks and benefits involved. That being said I do hope that the information here will help anyone interested to make more sense of the vast amount of information available.

Background

What are Sats? In order to fully understand Sats some knowledge about the cryptocurrency ‘Bitcoin’ is necessary. The concept of Bitcoin was first proposed in published document in 2008 written by an unknown individual who went by the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto. In 2009 Bitcoin was launched. It is a form of digital currency; this means that it does not have a physical form like a pound or dollar. Instead, it exists digitally on a computer network called the ‘Blockchain’. The network is a shared public space that records ownership of digital assets and allows for secure transactions. The blockchain is made up of individual ‘blocks’  which are linked together, hence the name ‘blockchain’. Blocks are similar to storage files, they are able to store crypto transaction information, so each block itself is a string of individual transactions. Alongside the transaction information, blocks have their own individual code made up of numbers and letters. The code for these blocks is made cryptographically, this means that the letters and numbers are generated randomly and cannot be guessed for example by a hacker. Like a fingerprint, they are entirely unique. Every block uses the previous block’s code when being generated. This ensures that there is a tamper proof chronological sequence. Once created these blocks cannot be changed or tampered with meaning that they are like a map of all previous crypto transactions. This will be important for later! Approximately every 10 minutes a new block is unlocked and all the transactions within that block are validated. With each new block that is unlocked 3.125 new Bitcoins are rewarded to the miner that unlocked the block and subsequently enter circulation (at the time of writing, this amount halves at each Bitcoin halving).

Bitcoin, and the blockchain, is also decentralised, this means that there is no central authority. In other words, there is no one individual or organisation (such as a bank or government) that controls it. Instead, it uses any devices that access the blockchain, these devices are called ‘nodes’. Each node helps process and store the data meaning there is no single location that stores all the information. It also means that the nodes (devices) do not keep a separate copy of the database that needs updating because they actively play a part in creating it, this is known as a consensus mechanism. In order for a transaction to be added to the blockchain it must be ‘approved’ by a majority of nodes. For example, a transaction trying to spend coins that have previously been use and no longer belong to an account will not be approved. A handy consequence of this is that the information cannot be corrupted or lost.

So, what does all this actually mean? In summary it means that the blockchain, and subsequently the transaction data stored, is secure, permanent and traceable. Now to answer the initial question, what are Sats?

 

 

Satoshis (Sats)

Eagle eyed readers may have noticed where Satoshis get their name from, they are named after the creator of Bitcoin Satoshi Nakamoto. In the same way that pennies make up a pound or cents make up a dollar, Bitcoin also has a smaller denomination called a Satoshi (Sat). However, unlike pennies and cents, in each Bitcoin there are 100 million Sats. As such, 1 ordinary Sat would be worth 1/100,000,000 (one, one hundred millionth)of a Bitcoin. At the time of writing this the worth of one Sat is 0.00063251 cents. So why has one single Sat been sold for $25,400?

When Bitcoin was first created it’s Sats were unnumbered and identical, similarly to how all pennies in a pound are the same. However, in 2023 Casey Rodarmor, a software developer created ‘the Ordinal Protocol’. Essentially the Ordinal Protocol is software that gave every Sat its own unique numerical code based on the order in which it was mined. Earlier we learnt that approximately every 10 minutes a block is opened, and this rewards the miner with 3.125 Bitcoin. It is these rewarded Bitcoin’s Sats that become the next Sats in the ordinal sequence. This means that each individual Sats’ place in a Bitcoin, its place in a block, and its transaction history can be tracked. This created ‘Rare Sats’. I think it is important to note here that in many places online the word ‘block’ is used for both the transaction block unlocked by a miner and the ‘block’ of 3.125 Bitcoin that the miner was rewarded. From here on when discussing blocks, I will refer to the blocks being unlocked on the blockchain as ‘transaction blocks’ and the blocks of new Sats entering circulation and becoming the next Sats in the ordinal sequence as ‘reward blocks’. The Sat that sold for $25,400 was one of these rare Sats. There are many types of rare Sats.

Types of Rare Sats.

Originally rare Sats were categorised into an index by Casey Rodarmor, the developer whose software gave individual Sats a unique number. The Rodarmor Rarity Index has several levels based on how common the Sat in question is. These categories are:

• Common Sats
• Uncommon Sats
• Rare Sats
• Epic Sats
• Legendary Sats
• Mythic Sat

Thanks to Bitcoin enthusiasts, since this index, an additional category known as ‘Exotic Sats’ has developed. Some sats many belong to multiple rare categories making them even more sought after. The categories of Exotic Sats include:

• Black Sats
• Alpha Sats
• Omega Sats
• Vintage Sats
• Nakamoto Sats
• Block 9 Sats
• Block 9 450x Sats
• First Tx Sats
• Block 286 Sats
• Block 78 Sats
• Legacy Sats
• Pizza Sats
• Jpeg Sats
• Silk Road Sats
• Hitman Sats
• Block 666 Sats
• Palindrome Sats
• Paliblock Palindrome Sats
• Uniform Palinception Sats
• Perfect Palinception Sats

Rodarmor Sat Index Sats:

Common Sats

Common Sats are any Sats without any special properties. They were not used in any historic transactions; they are not the first or last Sat in any Bitcoin block (of transactions) and their code sequence does not have any special properties such as being a palindrome (symmetrical and read the same backwards as it is forwards). Common Sats make up over 99% of all Sats.

Uncommon Sats

An Uncommon Sat is the first Sat in a block. So, the first Sat in the ordinal sequence when a miner receives their new, uncirculated 3.125 Sat reward.

Rare Sats

In order to ensure that a new block is opened at a consistent rate, approximately every 10 minutes, the difficulty of unlocking a new block is adjusted every 2,016 blocks (roughly every 2 weeks). This is because new miners join the race to unlock transaction blocks, making the unlocking process easier and faster. A Rare Sat is the first Sat in the first reward block following a difficulty adjustment.

Epic Sats

Every 4 years an event called the Bitcoin halving occurs. The most resent halving being 2024. This event halves the amount of Bitcoin that is rewarded for unlocking a transaction block. We know that at the time of writing this the reward for unlocking a transaction block is 3.125 Bitcoin. An Epic Sat is the first Sat in the first reward block following a halving event.

Legendary Sats

Every 6 halving events, approximately every 24 years, the Bitcoin halving occurs at the same time as the difficulty adjustment. The first Sat from the first reward block following the occurrence of simultaneous halving and difficulty adjustments will be Legendary Sats. As Bitcoin was launched in 2009, less than 24 years ago, the first incidence of this is expected to be around 2032/2033.

 

Mythic Sat

You may have noticed that unlike the other Sat titles that are plural, this title is singular. That is because there is one single Mythic Sat. The first block on a blockchain is known as the ‘Genisis block’. The Bitcoin Genisis Block was created by none other than the elusive Satoshi Nakamoto. As you may have guessed a Mythic Sat is the first Sat in the Genisis Block, therefore is the only Mythic Sat in existence.

(additional page each transaction block contains the code from the one before, therefore present in every block)

 

Exotic Sats:

Black Sats

We know about all the first Sats such as the first Sat in a reward block being an uncommon Sat and the first Sat in a reward block after a difficulty adjustment being a rare Sat. Black Sats use the same events as the Rodarmor Index the only difference is that they are the last Sat in the Block as opposed to the first. So, there are several types of Black Sats including Black Uncommon Sats, Black Rare Sats, Black Epic Sats, Black Legendary Sats and the Black Mythic Sat.

Alpha Sats

So far most special Sats have looked at the first sat in a block. Alpha Sats refer to the first Sat in a single Bitcoin. Because they are the first Sat, they always end with 8 consecutive 0s.

Omega Sats

Omega Sats are similar to Alpha Sats in that they also refer to a certain Sat in a single Bitcoin as opposed to a reward block. Omega Sats, however, are the last Sat in a single Bitcoin.

Vintage Sats

The Sats from the first 1000 reward blocks ever mined make up what is known as Vintage Sats. Many special Sats in other exotic categories also belong to this set.

Nakamoto Sats

The name of this Sats group is rather self-explanatory. Any Sats that belong to Bitcoin mined by Satoshi Nakamoto are called Nakamoto Sats.

Block 9 Sats

Block 9 is one of the many transaction blocks mined by Nakamoto. What makes Block 9 special is that it is the reward from this block (50 Bitcoin) that were used in Nakamoto’s first transactions. This means that the Sats in this block are among the oldest in circulation.

Block 9 450x

Block 9 450x Sats are simply Sats from first Bitcoin of the 50 that were rewarded to Nakamoto for unlocking transaction Block 9 (the first reward block to be used in transfers by Nakamoto). We have already seen that first Sats hold significance therefore, it is not surprising that the first Bitcoin and therefore all its Sats would be more sought after.

First Tx Sats

Of the 50 Block 9 Sats are an extra special subgroup made up of 10 Bitcoin worth of Sats (1 million), these are called Tx Sats. In order to test his newly developed system Nakamoto made their first transaction using Bitcoin in which they sent 10 Bitcoin to Hal Finney. This was the first ever Bitcoin transaction. A historic event between two key people making the Tx Sats extremely sought after.

Block 286 Sats

Block 286 Sats are Sats that belong to the Bitcoin used in Nakamoto’s second ever transaction. This was a transaction from Nakamoto to Dustin Trammell.

Block 78 Sats

We already know that Hal Finney is a key person in the crypto world, he is an embellished software developer and the receiver of the first ever Bitcoin transaction made by Nakamoto. He is also the second person, second only to the Bitcoin creator Nakamoto themselves, to mine Bitcoin. The first transaction block mined by Hal Finney was block 78. Block 78 Sats are the Sats rewarded to Finney for unlocking this transaction block.

Legacy Sats

Casey Rodarmor (the creator of the ordinal protocol we mentioned earlier) ran a workshop in June 2022. He gave people who attended this workshop Sats, in total 41 wallets each containing 10,000 Sats were gifted. That Sats that were gifted are now called Legacy Sats.

Pizza Sats

Possibly one of the most well-known Bitcoin sales in history was the sale of 2 Papa John’s pizzas for the price of 10,000 Bitcoin on the 22^nd of May 20210. This purchase, made by software developer Laszlo Hanyecz marked the first ever physical sale using Bitcoin. Sats used in this transaction are known as Pizza Sats.

Jpeg Sats

Although many people think the first sale using Bitcoin was the Pizza sale, this is in fact not true. The purchase of pizza was indeed the first sale of a physical object. However, before this an individual named Sabunir used a forum called Bitcoin Forum to sell a Jpeg (digital picture) that they had created. This sale of one Jpeg for 500 Bitcoin (worth approximately $1 at the time) went through on the 24^th of February 2010. Sats used for this sale are known as Jpeg Sats.

Silk Road Sats

In 2011 Ross William Ulbricht (AKA Dread Pirate Roberts) started an online black market that facilitated the sale of illegal goods called Silk Road. The base currency used on this site was Bitcoin. On the 1^st of October 2013 the FBI seized Ulbricht’s laptop, after which the American Government seized thousands of Bitcoin. Some of the seized Bitcoin was auctioned off on the 27^th of June 2014. The Sats that were seized from Silk Road and auctioned are known as Silk road Sats.

Hitman Sats

In order to protect the anonymity of his illegal black-market site, the creator of Silk Road, Ulbricht allegedly attempted to hire a hitman. The hitman’s target was a user by the name of FriendlyChemist, who was threatening to expose the identities of many Silk Road customers and top vendors. It was following this Ulbricht allegedly sent 1,670 Bitcoin (approximately $150,000 at the time) to another user called Redandwhite as a first payment for orchestrating the killing of FriendlyChemist. Although no evidence exists of a murder taking place, The Sats that make up the Bitcoin sent in this transaction are called Hitman Sats.

Block 666 Sats

Block 666 sats already fall into a rare Sat category, they belong to the reward for the 666 block mined meaning they are vintage. However, the biblical significance of the number 666 another layer of specialty.

Palindrome Sats

Palindromes refer to a sequence in which numbers or letters create the same number or word when they are written backwards as the do when they are written forwards. For example, the name Hannah. There are different types of Palindrome Sats:

1D (1-digit palindromes) are palindromes with 1 number e.g. 444444444444444.

2D palindromes have 2 numbers e.g. 5595995995955.

3D palindromes have 3 numbers e.g. 773788373887377.

Sequence Palindromes are Palindromes which contain the same digit 3 times consecutively  e.g. 595570000075595.

Paliblock Palindrome Sats

Paliblock Palindrome Sats are Sats that themselves are a palindromes but are also in a block which has a palindrome number.

Uniform Palinception Sats

Uniform Palinception Sats are Sats that have a small palindrome embedded in the sequence e.g. 8373898689983738

Perfect Palinception Sats

If a Sats number is made up of a repetition of a small palindrome which then makes up a longer palindrome they are called perfect Palinception Sats e.g. 290922909229092.