When you're thinking of the prime destination for a spot of sledging, the Sahara Desert probably isn't the first location that immediately springs to mind.
Credit: Karim Bouchetata/Geoff Robinson Photography
However, despite the usual searing heat of the sprawling African wilderness, part of it was transformed into a veritable winter wonderland due to a freak snowstorm that saw 16 inches of the white stuff fall on a small Saharan town in just one day.
The unexpected flurry marked the third time in 40 years that the town of Ain Sefra in Algeria has experienced snowfall, the second most recent being just last year.
The town itself experienced just a few inches of snow, but the surrounding dunes were completely covered.
Photographer Karim Bouchetata told the Daily Mail: "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."
In early 2017, the town was hit by enough snow that children were able to build snowmen and go sledging down the dunes.
The deep snow caused chaos around Christmas with roads becoming icy - leaving passengers getting stranded in buses.
Prior to that, snow was last seen in 1979, but the storm only lasted for around half an hour.
Ain Sefra is located around 3,280ft above sea level and surrounded by the Atlas Mountains. Despite its altitude, snow is still extremely rare and the temperature in the town rarely drops below six degrees Celsius in January.
Featured Image Credit: Karim Bouchetata/Geoff Robinson PhotographyTopics: Snow, World News, Africa