Bitcoin Deep Dive

A mechanism-first tour of Bitcoin — from the 21M supply schedule and UTXO accounting, through Lightning and the fee market, up to 51% attack economics and holding BTC non-custodially in Zelcore. Each part builds on the last so you end up with a working model of why Bitcoin behaves the way it does on-chain.

1. 01

   The Bitcoin Halving Schedule: Why BTC Supply Is Capped at 21 Million

   Bitcoin's halving cuts the block subsidy every 210,000 blocks, enforcing a hard 21 million cap. Here is the schedule, the math, and why it matters.

   6 min read · beginner

2. 02

   UTXOs Explained: How Bitcoin Tracks Balances Without Accounts

   Bitcoin has no account balances. It tracks unspent outputs (UTXOs) like coins in a purse. Here is how the model works, why it exists, and what it means for you.

   7 min read · beginner

3. 03

   Bitcoin Fees and the Block-Space Market: SegWit, Mempool, and Fee Estimation

   How Bitcoin transaction fees work: weight units, the SegWit witness discount, address types, mempool dynamics, RBF, CPFP, and why fees spike.

   7 min read · intermediate

4. 04

   The Lightning Network: Payment Channels, Routing, and Bitcoin's Scaling Layer

   How Lightning turns Bitcoin into a payment network: 2-of-2 channels, HTLC routing, liquidity, Taproot channels, splicing, LSPs, and honest trade-offs.

   9 min read · intermediate

5. 05

   51% Attack Economics: Why Bitcoin's Security Budget Matters

   Why Bitcoin's ~900 EH/s hashrate makes 51% attacks economically irrational, what smaller chains like BTG, ETC, and BSV teach us, and how to pick a safe confirmation depth.

   10 min read · advanced

6. 06

   Holding Bitcoin in Zelcore: UTXO Hygiene, Lightning Access, and Self-Custody in Practice

   A practical, advanced guide to storing Bitcoin in Zelcore: BIP-84 addresses, UTXO hygiene, fee tiers, Lightning split, and a risk checklist that ties the whole series together.

   9 min read · advanced