Mesmerising photos of the snow-covered Sahara desert in northwestern Algeria have taken the internet by storm. The temperatures in the hottest desert in the Naama province of Algeria in the northern part of the Sahara and close to the Moroccan border plummeted to below freezing after the snowfall earlier this month.
One of the town’s, Ain Sefra—known as the gateway to the Sahara desert—witnessed light dusting of snow. According to the BBC Weather’s Nicky Berry on Wednesday, temperatures in Ain Sefra dropped below -2 for the last three nights. Berry added this was only a few degrees colder than average at this time of year.
Netizens have gone gaga over the images of stunning patterns of ice crystals in the red sand dunes.
Here are the photos and videos of the snowfall in the Sahara desert:
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Fifth time in 42 years! Sahara desert covered with snow An interesting natural phenomenon was encountered in the Sahara Desert. It snowed in the desert, which reached a temperature of 58 degrees in summer. With the snowfall in 1979, 2016, 2018 and 2021, this rare natural.. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/u5BThStE06
— Green Planet Magazine (@GreenPlanetMag1) January 20, 2022
Snow has fallen in the Sahara Desert in northwestern Algeria for the 5th time in 42 years 🇩🇿 pic.twitter.com/R82mg6G07H
— African Hub (@TheAfrican_Hub) January 19, 2022
Rare Snowfall in Sahara Desert Covers Sand Dunes in Ice
Known primarily for being a searing and sandy wasteland, a part of the Sahara Desert has been transformed into an icy winter wonderland. pic.twitter.com/NrToLnVKoa
— Marcelle (@marseelee) January 19, 2022
One of the amazing ‘Snowfall in the Sahara Desert’ pictures available on the BBC news website today! pic.twitter.com/jXzF1gVwLT
— Chorister9retired (@Chorister9) January 19, 2022
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The desert also witnessed snowfall in 2021, 2018, 2017 and 2016. However, snowfall on the red sand dunes during December 2016 surprised everyone. The BBC cited residents of Ain Sefra as saying that they had seen snow in 2016 for the first time since 1979.
Regarding snowfall in the desert, a UK Met Office spokeswoman had said earlier as quoted by the Independent that it is “unusual but not unheard of”.
As per the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s report in 2018, the identification of extreme climate in the Sahara region has been hampered by the lack of data and scientific studies. Hotter, drier conditions and changing weather patterns due to climate crisis in Africa leads to increased desertification of the Sahara desert, according to The Independent.
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