Chinese launch today

China is about to launch a Shenzhou 7 rocket today. 3 crewmembers, and
one will do an EVA. Flight to last about 3 days according to media reports.


Question: is this the second or 3rd chinese launch ? Or have there been
more launches that just didn't get western media coverage ?

When one looks at the rapid pace of USA flights during the 1960s, I am
somewhat curious on whether any conclusions can be drawn from the fact
that China seems to have a LOT of time between launches ?

Is this a budget issue ? Or is china dependant on limited russian
production capacity for its rockets ? (and if so, will china compete
against the USA for russian rocket/parts when the USA will be buying
extra Soyuz flights after the shuttle is retired ?)

.

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