Weather obsessed Brits will be able to see where snow is falling in real time as a “whiteout” is predicted across the country this week.
The UK snow map, created by Leicester developer Ben Marsh, uses tweets to create an interactive map of where snow is falling across the Britain.
Twitter users who hashtag #uksnow along with the first part of their postcode and a snowfall rating between one and 10 can see their tweet appear on the map.
Mr Marsh came up with the idea 10 years ago as he was waiting for a snowstorm to hit the UK.
He noticed people posting live reports of snow in their area alongside the hashtag #uksnow.
By processing the data through Google Maps he was able to create a crowd-sourced snowfall map of the UK.
When it first began, the hashtag was the eighth most tweeted news topic worldwide for the year and in 2018, the site received over one million page views.
Mr Marsh said he thinks the page’s success comes down to the “stereotype” of Britons being obsessed with the weather.
“Brit’s love to talk about the weather,” he said.
“Snow doesn’t often happen here in the UK and when it does, chaos often ensues.
“I’ve tested a similar map with the US and other countries with little take-up.
“They just seem to get on with it.”
Mr Marsh said while the ratings system is often subjective - a three out of 10 by someone in Scotland could be considered a 10 out of 10 by someone in London - once a high critical mass is reached the map often paints a fairly representative picture of the actual snowfall in the UK.
He added that the map can be practical too.
“I’ve had tweets thanking me for helping people with their travel plans,” he said.
Forecasters have said the UK is set for its first widespread snow of 2019 from Tuesday.
The Met Office has predicted an 80 percent chance of snowfall in London.
