China submitted to the International Telecommunication Union (MSE) two requests for huge satellite networks in non-geostationary orbits, indicating intentions to reserve opportunities for next-generation megagroups.
According to the documents, published in the ITU "as-received" database, at the end of December 2025 In 2018, China submitted requests with the designations CTC-1 (CHN2025-79441) та CTC-2 (CHN2025-79398), each of which covers 96 714 satellites in 3 660 orbital planes. Together, these requests constitute one of the largest group submissions in history, highlighting the growing competition for orbital and spectral resources.
CTC-1 and CTC-2 are early stages of ITU regulatory requests for a proposed network of satellites in non-geostationary orbit (NGSO), which give priority dates, but is not an authorization to deploy satellites. Although they are presented as two separate NGSO networks according to ITU rules, CTC-1 and CTC-2 appear to be part of China's unified strategic initiative to prioritize spectrum and orbits for the upcoming next-generation mega cluster. This step can be aimed at long-term spectrum reservation, saving options for several future groupings, as well as avoiding crowding out by earlier Western inquiries.
Source: https://spacenews.com