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In 2011, ����ý viewers were taken on an epic journey when the Frozen Planet series gave us unprecedented access into life in the Poles.

Now, 11 years later, Frozen Planet II returns to observe the mesmerising species that thrive there and beyond, presented by Sir David Attenborough.

Here is ����ý Bitesize’s sneak peek behind the scenes of Frozen Planet II.

So, what’s new?

The original Frozen Planet series documented some of the greatest wildernesses on Earth, and the unique challenges that the animals living there face in order to survive.

Taking it even further, Frozen Planet II also explores life beyond the Poles, from high mountains and frozen deserts to snowbound forests and ice-cold oceans, to uncover the wildlife dramas that play out in all the world’s coldest regions.

Executive Producer Mark Brownlow explained, “In this series we celebrate the frozen planet through wildlife, engaging the audience with animal stories and settings that will enthral them.”

“I hope people will feel that, while this is a wonderful celebration and an opportunity to be transported to these magical worlds, at the same time there is a fierce contemporary relevance to these stories.”

The new series will also reveal the true impact of temperature rises on both wildlife and humans. It will introduce us to the scientists who have dedicated their lives to understanding what these changes mean for the planet as a whole.

Creating unforgettable moments

By the time the new six-part series airs on ����ý One, it will have been in production for four and a half years. With 2,188 days of filming across every continent (and even in space), the crew certainly had a big job on their hands!

For one particular shoot, the team travelled to Antarctica to film the emperor penguins with only 10 days to complete the sequence. In order to capture footage of the penguin’s first swim, the crew spent up to nine hours a day in water that was -1°C.

Working in conjunction with local rangers and with advice from a local wildlife photographer, they also secured footage of very rare Amur leopard and Siberian tigers in their wild habitat.

With the use of high-definition remote camera traps, the team documented the lives of these rare and secretive cats to reveal the two species living alongside one another and even walking in each other’s footprints.

Meeting new animal friends along the way

Most of us will remember the original series for its cast of heroic animals, and Frozen Planet II is no different.

In Mongolia, the crew caught footage of the cute but very grumpy Pallas cat during the country’s harsh winter. This required the production team to sit completely stationary in wooden hides for up to eight hours each day. In fact, it was so cold their sandwiches froze solid.

Whilst on location in Svalbard, Norway, the camera team filmed two young polar bears building a surprising relationship. The usually solitary animals were caught spending several hours together, seemingly dancing on ice!

Meanwhile, in Kenya, we get to meet an unassuming high-casqued chameleon with a few tricks up her sleeve. Unlike most chameleon species, who mainly lay eggs, these creatures develop their young inside the body of their bodies before giving birth, a process known as viviparity. This is the first time a high-casqued chameleon birth has been filmed for television.

The tech behind the magic

As well as being filmed in Ultra-High Definition, the new series also makes use of cutting-edge technologies in order to capture the weird and wonderful life in the Poles.

Equipment such as new rebreather diving technology was used to film underwater sequences. Not only do these rebreathers not produce bubbles, but they are less disturbing to wildlife and enabled the team to get more intimate footage, such as harp seal pups learning to swim and Weddell seals interactions.

By deploying drones the crew were able to film extraordinary shots from aerial perspectives. This includes a group of killer whales in the process of ‘wave-washing’, a complex hunting technique thought to only be used by approximately 100 killer whales in the Antarctic peninsula.

The only other time that the wave-washing killer whales had been filmed creating waves to knock prey off ice floes was when ����ý made the original Frozen Planet series.

So with all that and more to look forward to, it's safe to say that Frozen Planet II will definitely be worth the wait.

The first episode of Frozen Planet II will broadcast on Sunday 11 September at 8pm on ����ýOne.