As seen from space, Britain under a blanket of white

This extraordinary picture, taken by a Nasa satellite, reveals uniform coverage of snow across the entire country.

And the landscape is expected to stay white for another two weeks, as freezing temperatures show no signs of rising.

With some places having already seen the mercury drop to -18c, bone-chilling winds from the north-east are set to blow across the country over the weekend and could lead to the lowest temperatures ever recorded in the UK.

In these conditions, the stubborn white carpet could take weeks to clear, because any warm temperatures underground have no chance

of reaching the surface.