Hot air balloons. Arctic exploration. And a plan that may have been doomed from the start.

This week, Jamie and Leo take to the skies to follow the strange and tragic story of Andrée's Arctic Balloon Expedition.

In 1897, Swedish engineer and balloon enthusiast Salomon August Andrée believed the future of polar exploration might not be by ship or sled, but by air. His plan was simple in theory. Launch a hydrogen balloon from the Arctic and ride the winds straight across the North Pole.

What could possibly go wrong?

As the expedition set off toward the frozen unknown, problems began piling up almost immediately. Equipment failed, navigation became impossible, and the Arctic environment proved far less forgiving than anyone expected.

What followed became one of the most haunting stories of early exploration. A journey f ...