Ulysses is an international project of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the European Space Agency. The space shuttle Discovery launched the Ulysses spacecraft on 6 October 1990. Ulysses' mission is the exploration of the Sun's atmosphere (the heliosphere) especially the unexplored regions above the Sun's north and south poles.

Since current launch vehicles cannot propel modern spacecraft up and out of the ecliptic, the trick was to find some other way to bend the flight path, and the solution was the immense gravity of the planet Jupiter. By aiming at just the right point near Jupiter to make use of its gravity field, Ulysses got what amounts to a free ride on a natural launch vehicle. Therefore, Ulysses was sent to Jupiter and its gravity sent the spacecraft plunging back inward toward the Sun's south pole.

During the first solar orbit, Ulysses' nine scientific instruments - the product of the U.S. and European scientific laboratories - collected information about the Sun's magnetic field, the solar wind and the cosmic rays that stream into the solar system from among the stars of the Milky Way.

Across:

3 The name of the NASA vehicle that launched Ulysses.
5 The project name.
7 The number of instruments aboard Ulysses.
8 All instruments are on board the ____.
9 The most prominent feature of the Solar System.
13 Kennedy Flight Space Center is in ____?
14 Concentrations of magnetic flux.

Down:

1 Ulysses' mission is to study the heliosphere above the ____ of the Sun.
2 The Sun's principal chemistry is 92.1% ____.
4 Ulysses used this planet for a gravitational assist.
6 Solar energy is created in the Sun's ____.
7 A "wobbly" spin motion.
8 NASA launch vehicle.
10 Outer part of the Sun's atmosphere.
11 The Sun is a ____.
12 The Ulysses project is managed at ____.

Stumped? View the puzzle clues!
Ready for the answers?