A project advisory panel and a NASA assessment team have cleared the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) to continue development of the $286 million Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging spacecraft (Messenger) mission. Messenger is due for launch in March 2004 to fly past the nearest planet to the sun in 2007-08 and enter orbit in 2008. The spacecraft will map the entire surface, completing the survey of Mariner 10 - the only craft to have explored Mercury - in 1973-74.
Source: Flight International
