Has it ever snowed in the Sahara Desert? If so, when?

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For the only time in recorded weather history, snow fell in the Sahara desert in southern Algeria on February 18, 1979. The storm lasted only half an hour and the snow was gone within hours. Some parts get snow every year. The Sahara is mostly an elevated plateau with a mean altitude of 600 m/1,968 ft, the surface of which is diversified by high tablelands and mountains (some 43% of the area is mountains). The summits of the central Ahaggar Mountains and of the Tibesti Mountains, farther to the east, rise as high as 2,600 m/8,530 ft and are snow-capped for several months of the year. http://www.helicon.co.uk/online/datasets/samples/geopol/gazetteer.htm Feb 20 04, 2:13 AM