The first chapter provides an overview of the region, introducing the heliosphere prior to the Ulysses mission, and the objectives and characteristics of the mission itself. Subsequent chapters discuss in detail specific areas of the heliosphere, including the solar wind, large and small scale features, cosmic rays and energetic particles, and the observations of interstellar gas and cosmic dust. Each of these chapters is written by members of the Ulysses science team, concentrating on their own areas of expertise, and is written in a clear and accessible way. In this book, the authors aim to summarise our understanding of the heliosphere near solar minimum and to provide the basis for understanding the more complex state of the heliosphere around solar maximum, which will be observed during the next phase of the Ulysses mission.