Shizi Zhanzheng (War Lion) - Technical notes

The space elevator caused great uncertainty about the future of orbital and re-entry vehicles so, from the mid 21^st century, few companies or governments were willing to invest in their development. One of few developed in this period was the "Shizi Zhanzheng" (Chinese for "War Lion"), a fairly simple non-reusable orbiter with a re-entry capsule. It was based heavily on the Shenzhou vehicle but incorporated some nanotechnology and was more flexible. Its numerous variants could be adapted for a variety of scientific, commercial and military uses.

Like previous similar space craft, it consisted of a service module that contained most the power, fuel tanks and engines. This had two accelerated ion drives, which could allow it travel rapidly in vacuum with little fuel expenditure. It's slightly flattened shape, allowed room for a variety of cargo pods or weapon systems to be attached to the sides. Above this was the re-entry capsule which could return up to four tikanoughts (and/or a small amount of cargo) safely to earth. The uppermost orbital section could be varied for a large range of functions but almost hallways incorporated a standard docking hatch that could allow it to dock with any space craft with a docking hatch of the same type. These were now standard on manned space craft of any nation or corporation. The orbital section could be left in orbit for a prolonged period, often acting like a mine or missile.

The Shizi Zhanzheng were one of China's main weapons in the China war. After the war most the remaining vehicles were destroyed but some were used to service the Omega space station until it's destruction in 2137. It was also rumored that some craft had fallen into the hands of questionable organizations like Islamic Revivalists and Nanofashists.

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