Every year, for one month only, a bizarre community springs up in our planet’s most hostile environment.

This week, the ice airport plays host to the North Pole Marathon, the coldest race on Earth. The runners face a brutal frozen landscape, sub-zero temperatures and the threat of frostbite. But for one athlete, there is a surprise at the end. Also travelling to Barneo is solo explorer Mark Wood. Fresh from his trek to the South Pole, Mark is now attempting to complete ‘the last degree’ – a 70-mile journey from 89 to 90 degrees north – totally alone. Surrounded by 500 miles of ice in every direction, Mark’s only link to the outside world will be a satellite phone as he faces isolation, deadly cracks in the frozen surface of the ocean and predatory polar bears. Elsewhere, a team of American researchers investigate whether the polar ice cap is shrinking. To get the data they need, the scientists must rely on the world-class skills of Camp Barneo's chopper pilots, plus some good-natured bribery.

This week Channel 5 concludes its exclusive coverage of Ice Station Barneo, the temporary airport built on ice in the Arctic Ocean, with a look at more of the extraordinary workers and characters attracted to the barren polar wastes. With a lifespan of only four weeks, Barneo is a magnet for people passionate about living on the edge. Visitors include not only scientists and explorers, but also skydivers, a couple looking for the ultimate wedding venue, extreme golfers who think nothing of teeing off in temperatures of 35 degrees below zero and the hardy souls whose idea of fun is to run the notorious Arctic Marathon. The polar region changes the people who visit it and the cameras are with them as they face up to themselves and the challenges posed by this awe inspiring, unforgiving landscape. This week, dog-handler Rafael is guiding his team of huskies to the North Pole.