Salomon August Andree and his attempt to reach the North Pole in the balloon Örnen have captured the imagination of people for at least 120 years. In addition to the obvious question "Whatever happened to them?" came the difficulty of understanding why three reasonable men would risk their lives on such a reckless project, without the proper training, preparations, planning, equipment and back-up plan. This book is the story of those three men - Salomon August Andree, Nils Strindberg and Knut Frænkel - and their tragic expedition. It tells how Andree got his idea, the process leading up to the flight, the expedition, the mystery and the discovery of the remains at Kvitøya in 1930. The book also includes more than 220 photos, illustrations, newspaper articles and the original plan as Andree presented it at the Sixth International Geographical Congress in London in 1895.