{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1755381,
        "msgid": "china-unveils-advanced-space-umbrella-to-rival-starlink-1779542551",
        "date": "2026-05-21 18:08:00",
        "title": "China Unveils Advanced 'Space Umbrella' to Rival Starlink",
        "author": "Wahyunanda Kusuma Pertiwi",
        "source": "KOMPAS",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Technology",
        "summary": "China's Galaxy Space has unveiled a high-performance deployable satellite antenna shaped like a folding umbrella, designed to fold compactly for rocket launch and unfold in orbit. The 'space umbrella' aims to support satellite internet, communications, navigation, and Earth mapping, including direct-to-cell connections to smartphones, potentially reducing dependence on terrestrial towers. The technology targets underserved regions and disaster scenarios, strengthening China's private space sector against Starlink.",
        "content": "<p>China continues to push technological development, including in\nsatellite Internet, an area currently dominated by Starlink of SpaceX,\nElon Musk\u2019s space company. Recently, one of China\u2019s private space\ncompanies, Galaxy Space, unveiled a unique satellite antenna whose shape\nresembles a folding umbrella. The antenna is designed to fold tightly\nduring rocket launch and then \u2018unfold\u2019 once in Earth orbit. Because of\nits shape and mechanism resembling an umbrella, the technology is\nnicknamed a \u201cspace umbrella\u201d or space umbrella. According to Galaxy\nSpace, this \u2018advanced umbrella\u2019 is the first high-performance deployable\numbrella antenna developed by a private space company in China. So what\nis such an umbrella-like antenna intended for? The technology will be\nused to support satellite Internet, communications, navigation, and\nEarth mapping. One of the main objectives of its development is to\nsupport direct satellite-to-smartphone connections, or direct-to-cell,\nsimilar to what Starlink is developing. In other words, mobile phones\ncould connect directly to the Internet via satellite without relying too\nmuch on Base Transceiver Station (BTS) towers on the ground. This kind\nof technology is considered important for remote areas, blind-spot\nregions or areas without signal coverage, and for disaster\ncommunications when mobile networks are interrupted. Galaxy Space says\nthe umbrella-like design was chosen to maximise space efficiency inside\nthe rocket, since satellite antennas are usually large to enable\nstronger reception and transmission; rocket storage space, by contrast,\nis limited. A simple analogy is a folding umbrella placed in a bag when\nclosed and then opened when used.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/china-unveils-advanced-space-umbrella-to-rival-starlink-1779542551",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}