Rare occurrence: people decide to go skiing in... the Sahara Desert.

On January 20th, snow fell to a depth of over a meter in the town of Ain Sefra – the gateway to the Sahara Desert – surprising and delighting both locals and tourists.

People enthusiastically go skiing in the Sahara - Photo: Zineddine Hashas/Geoff Robinson Photography

According to Mirror, this is believed to be the heaviest snowfall in the area and caused chaos, rendering vehicles immobile and trapping many people. However, the phenomenon still delighted many, with a number of people going skiing.

"It started snowing around 1:30 this morning and it's now a meter deep in some places. People can't believe there's so much snow," said photographer Sekkouri Kamel, 38.

This is the third time snow has been recorded in the Sahara Desert region. The first was in 1979, but it only fell for about half an hour. The second was just before Christmas this past year, when snow fell on Ain Sefra for almost a day, turning the red sand dunes of the desert a pristine white.

Ain Sefra is located at an altitude of approximately 1,000 meters above sea level, surrounded by the Atlas Mountains. It is the gateway to the Sahara – the world's largest hot desert.

This desert stretches across almost all of northern Africa. Over hundreds of thousands of years, it has undergone numerous changes in temperature and humidity. Scientists predict that the Sahara will be reforested within the next 15,000 years.

The town of Ain Sefra rarely gets snow - Photo: Zineddine Hashas/Geoff Robinson Photography

On January 20th, the entire town was covered in a blanket of white snow - Photo: Zineddine Hashas/Geoff Robinson Photography

Unusual weather has completely altered the landscape here - Photo: Zineddine Hashas/Geoff Robinson Photography

Sand peeking through the snow creates a strange image - Photo: Zineddine Hashas/Geoff Robinson Photography

According to TTO