Space caSeby RobeRt Leighton, Amy goLdstein And mike shenk

Houston, we have some problems. Here’s a set of interconnected

puzzles to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

Solve the first six puzzles, each of which will give you a

one-word answer. Then, the seventh puzzle, “The Final Frontier,”

will reveal the answer to this question:

Why did eveRyone Like neiL ARmstRong fRom the stARt?

(Answers will be published on Tuesday.)

fULL AnsWeRs• First word spoken from the moon’s surface• Florida launch site (2 wds.)• Last name of the first American in space• Minor planets• 1998 comet-intercept movie (2 wds.)• Noted astronomer• The moon, for one

stAges1 Listerine competitor • Hosp. worker • Wards for critical hosp. patients2 Derisive laugh • Banned sports drugs3 Hugh Laurie role • 2,000 pounds4 That ship or hurricane • Golfer’s goal • Paid magazine page5 Bambi, for one • Person for whom “it’s hard out here,” in a song • Play a part6 Posed for an artist • Chicago transport • Upper echelon7 Real heel • Nut used for pies • Declare affirmatively • Bill’s veep

sepARAting stAges

Much the way a Saturn V rocket’s sections separated in space, the full answers

are words and phrases that have been broken down into sections. All of the sections are clued in “stages” that, when strung together in order, form a full answer — except that somewhere in

each set there will be one extra letter. First answer the stage clues in each numbered set, then delete

the extra letter to form one of the full answers. When you’re done, the extra letters, taken

in order of the Stages list, will spell the puzzle’s final answer.

zeRo-g The answer to each clue here has seven

letters, including one G. For each answer, first remove the G and then enter the remaining six letters, in order, around one of the dark hexagons in the grid,

starting in the space indicated by the pointer. Whether the answer proceeds clockwise or counterclockwise is for you

to determine. Each Outer answer should be entered around its corresponding number, but the Inner clues are not numbered, so you will need to determine where their

answers should go. When you’re done, read the letters in the shaded spaces around the middle

(in the only way they form a word) to find your six-letter answer word.

oUteR 1 “Moon starer” for “astronomer,”

for example 2 Verbal comparison 3 Square, parallelogram or triangle 4 Men’s fragrance 5 Nation that’s home to the

Greenwich Observatory 6 Neighbor of Libya 7 “Have a try!” (3 wds.) 8 Hoodwinking 9 Sparkle, like a field of snow 10 Puzzles 11 Lost one’s mind (2 wds.) 12 Ava of “One Touch of Venus”

inneR • Shackle worn around the ankle

(2 wds.) • Home of the Alhambra • More cockamamie • Hall of Fame pitcher Perry • E. L. Doctorow book made into

a movie and Broadway musical • Hitting or throwing high in the air

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mission ContRoL

At NASA, every directive is scanned for errors before it is released. Here are six memos that definitely have “bugs” — in each sentence, the name of an insect or arachnid has crept into one of the words, changing

it to a new word. Find each bug, eliminate it and replace it with the single correct letter that will restore the

sentence’s intended meaning. The corrected letters, taken in the order of the sentences, will

spell the puzzle’s answer word.

due to bulky equipment, on launch morning there can be only one astronaut mother transport vehicle, please.

While viewing earthrise, do not stagnate for too long or you may permanently damage your retinas.

According to the chaplain, it is probably a smidgen, though not a big one, to envy those astronauts chosen for the next mission.

All tour groups should congregate in the NASA visitors’ center and display gallantry until they are met by a tour coordinator.

it is crucial that we reticket all flight-related passwords if a breach in security is suspected.

Test pilots, please remember that momentary distraction causes just as many injuries as overfly recklessness.

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doCking mAneUveRs

Each picture can be identified with a three-letter word. Pair up two of these words for each

row in the grid (one to the left of the shaded space and one to the right) so that, when you add a letter in the shaded space, you will form a seven-letter answer to the clue given next to the row. When

you’re done, read down the shaded column to find your answer word.

Cotton cloth

Strapless garment (2 wds.)

Set aside

Storage site

Heat source

Church center

1 Each path must consist of five straight segments in this order: a downward move; a horizontal move (either left or right); another downward move; another horizontal move (left or right); and a final downward move.2 Each turn in the path must occur at one of the dots. A path may pass through a dot without turning, but a path may not turn where there is no dot.3 No path may pass through a space occupied by a satellite.4 A path may cross one or more of the other five paths.

There is only one possible path for each pair of corresponding numbers. Note the letter you cross each of the six times you enter the ATMOSPHERE. These six letters, in order from Path 1 to Path 6, will spell your answer word.

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Re-entRy Find a re-entry path that connects

each of the six shaded numbers at the top to its correspondingly numbered landing space

at the bottom, following these rules:

the finAL fRontieR Once you’ve solved all six puzzles, place the six answer

words into the first grid, one letter per box, in the only way they will interlock. Then transfer all the letters into

the second grid according to the numbers in the boxes. When you’re done, those letters, read in order row by row,

will spell out the answer to this question:

Why did eveRyone Like neiL ARmstRong fRom the stARt?

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Robert Leighton, Amy Goldstein and Mike Shenk are partners in Puzzability, which creates puzzles for print and interactive media.

Designed and illustrated by Rumors.

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A T M O S P H E R E

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Liftoff

For Rows, enter each answer across, one per row. The Rows clues are given out of order,

so you must determine the placement of their answers. For Boosters, enter the answers in order for

each numbered set of three clues, starting at the corresponding number at the bottom of the rocket and proceeding all the way up the column. For one answer

in each column, though, you will need to add one letter to form a new word. Use the Row answers to

help you figure out what letters to add. When you’re done, the five added letters, read

from left to right, will spell your answer word.

RoWs• Assigned stars to• Asteroid named for the goddess of the hearth• Beginning for giant or nova• Estate units• Fancy flapjack• Have life• John Connor’s mother in the “Terminator” movies• Liv of “Armageddon”• Run off to wed• Settle, as a debt• Sleeper’s sound• Small storage buildings• Solo• “To the moon, !”

boosteRs1 Rescue Supplies food for Airline based in Sweden2 Baseball’s Rodriguez Depend Workday break3 Riveting woman of World War II Chart, as a course Skin opening4 Tiny worker Rate of speed Looked, as through a telescope5 Homburg, for example Hurricane center Compensation for a wrong