Face of sea god reveals itself in extreme freeze
TEMPERATURES plunged to -23C on Wednesday night, the lowest in the UK in more than two decades, following an “extreme freeze”.
The mercury dropped to -23.0C (-9.4F) in Braemar, Aberdeenshire, the coldest temperature recorded in the UK since 1995, the Met Office said.
Forecasters said the last time a temperature below -20C was recorded in the UK was December 23, 2010.
While there was a widespread frost in the West yesterday amid a continued cold spell it isn’t expected that temperatures will dip much below -3C in the region over the next few days.
There is a possibility of some snow today and tomorrow on higher ground in the West, particularly in Gloucestershire and Herefordshire.
No matter how cold it is though Milo, a 15-year-old long-haired miniature Dachshund will be nice and warm on his walkies. Owner Chrissy Curzon, from Cheltenham, was yesterday spotted walking him around the Gloucestershire town in a furlined push chair as he was sporting a bobble hat at a jaunty angle.
Not quite as warm was a swan dubbed ‘Anton du Beak’ spotted ice skating on a frozen Pittville Lake, also in Cheltenham, by photographer Paul Nicholls.
Meanwhile in Devon the winter weather had onlookers heading back to their school days for a spot of ancient Greek history.
Rob Salem was out taking pictures of the huge swell at Brixham when he believed he saw the face of sea god Poseidon forming – in a giant wave. He said he was shocked when he reviewed the images and first spotted the huge face created within the 30ft wave.
Rob, 63, a wildlife photographer, said: “I was just taking my hour’s exercise and thought I would take the camera out with me.
‘’There was just an opportunity with the waves crashing up to get a great image.
“That photo was taken at about 20 frames a second and I got a whole sequence. But the ‘face in the wave’ was the best shot.
“I just initially named it as a face, but a lot of people are now calling it Poseidon. A lot of people have noticed that.
“I was just amazed to see that face there. When you are firing away taking frames you are just photographing a wave and don’t see anything.
“But when I got back and reviewed the images it just stood out straight away.
“I was thrilled with the pictures and glad that people have liked them.”