*Sahara Desert covered in snow for the second time in 40 years*

*Sahara Desert covered in snow for the second time in 40 years*

The Sahara Desert — the world’s hottest — has been hit by snow for only the second time in four decades. Photographers have taken incredible pictures of 18-inch deep snow covering the sand in the small North African desert town of Ain Sefra after a freak winter storm on Sunday.

The town had not seen snow for 37 years when it arrived this time last year — and locals were stunned when it began falling on the red sand dunes on Sunday morning. It comes as much of the northern hemisphere sees record cold temperatures. Snow started falling in the early hours of Sunday and it quickly began settling on the sand.

Last year, the town, known as “The Gateway to the Desert,” saw deep snow shortly after Christmas and it caused chaos, with passengers stranded on buses after the roads became slippery and icy. Before that, snow was last seen in Ain Sefra on February 18, 1979, when the snowstorm lasted just half an hour.