Snow blankets Sahara Desert after freak storm as temperatures plunge around globe

THESE photographs capture the incredible sight of snowfall in the Sahara Desert after a freak storm hit Algeria.

The incredible images show the desert town of Ain Sefra surrounded by unexpected snow which is several inches deep.

It is the third time the town's red dunes have been blanketed in the white stuff in 38 years.

Last January saw a metre of snow coat the world's hottest desert, with a sprinkling of flakes falling in December 2016.

Prior to that, snow had not been in Ain Sefra since February 18, 1979, when they had a flurry which lasted just 30 minutes.

Snow started falling in the early hours of Sunday morning and quickly began settling on the sand.

While the town saw an inch or two, the sand dunes on its outskirts were covered in snow.

Photographer Karim Bouchetata said: "We were really surprised when we woke up to see snow again. It stayed all day on Sunday and began melting at around 5pm."

A spokesman for the Met Office said this morning: 'Cold air was pulled down south in to North Africa over the weekend as a result of high pressure over Europe."
"The high pressure meant the cold weather extended further south than normal."

Ain Sefra is located around 1,000 metres above sea level and surrounded by the Atlas Mountains.






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Despite its altitude, it is extremely rare to see snow in the town.

The temperature is normally six to 12 degrees Celsius in January.

The Sahara Desert covers most of Northern Africa and it has gone through shifts in temperature and moisture over the past few hundred thousand years.

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