Severe wind gusts of up to 40mph could make temperatures across New York state feel as low as minus 30F

Record-breaking cold has already killed at least 22 people, with major pile-ups in Michigan and Pennsylvania

Comes as a deadly arctic blast continues to wreak havoc across the US, with up to 5 feet of snow in New York

He later posted images to Facebook, alongside pictures of circular patterns of ice (or 'ice pancakes') on shore

He captured stunning array of photos of St Joseph Lighthouse and pier, both of which were completely frozen

Photographer Joshua Nowicki trekked along the icy shore of Lake Michigan on Thursday armed with a camera


With sub-zero temperatures, severe wind chills and snowfall, millions across the eastern US have been desperately trying to stay warm this week.

But one photographer chose to brave the frigid weather for hours on end - to capture these stunning photos of St Joseph Lighthouse in Michigan.

Donning sturdy boots and warm clothing, Joshua Nowicki trekked along the icy shore of Lake Michigan on Thursday morning, armed with a camera.

He then captured a breathtaking array of photos of the frozen 30ft lighthouse and its pier, both of which were completely blanketed in white icicles.

He later uploaded the images to his Facebook page, alongside pictures of circular formations of ice - what he dubbed 'ice pancakes' - on the shore.

'Ice-covered lighthouse and 'ice pancakes' in St Joseph, Michigan,' wrote Mr Nowicki of his photographs, which were taken during a blizzard.

Scroll down for video

Stunning: This photo, captured by Joshua Nowicki, shows St Joseph Lighthouse and its pier, in Michigan, both of which are completely blanketed in white icicles. It also features a number of circular formations of ice - which Mr Nowicki dubs 'ice pancakes' - on the shore

Frozen over: Donning sturdy boots and warm clothing, Mr Nowicki trekked along the icy shore of Lake Michigan on Thursday morning to take the beautiful photos. Above, a close-up shot of the historic St Joseph Lighthouse, which is surrounded by mist and covered in ice

Icy: He later uploaded the images to his Facebook page, where they were deemed 'stunning' by users. Above, ice detail on the south pier

Frigid conditions: Mr Nowicki wrote: 'It is amazing how much the lake has started to freeze up in just a few days', Above, ice on the shore

Two days earlier: This photo shows St Joseph Lighthouse on Tuesday - as the extreme conditions started to take hold and freeze the pier

Brave: Mr Nowicki, who called the circular pieces of ice on the shore 'ice pancakes', is seen at Lake Michigan during Thursday's blizzard

It is believed the disc-shaped pieces of ice may have been created by stormy waves tumbling and pummeling ice crystals into 'pancake' formations.

Mr Nowicki's images - some taken two days earlier - were met with a positive response from Facebook users, with many deeming them 'stunning'.

Marge Hess Yetzke wrote: 'That is so unique. It looks like a frozen outer space scene', while Kathy Searles said: 'The wonder of nature is amazing!'

And David Howton joked: 'Wow, almost too cold to be out taking photographs I bet!'

It comes as a deadly arctic blast is continuing to wreak havoc across the US, with lake-effect snow expected to dump up to five feet of snow on parts of New York state this weekend. Meanwhile, below-freezing temperatures and wind chills are set to continue to affect a large stretch of the country.

This morning, residents from Northeastern Montana to Northwestern New York were given a windchill advisory by the National Weather Service.

In such frigid conditions, frostbite could set in with just 15 minutes' exposure to the air, the Weather Service said, advising people to keep pets indoors.

And over the next 48 hours, temperatures could fall 15 to 25 degrees below average in states surrounding the Great Lakes, NBC reported.

At around 7am today, a low of minus 23 degrees was recorded in Manitowish, Wisconsin.

Meanwhile, in Northeast New York, residents are preparing to deal with between one to five feet of snow. 'Heavy lake-effect snow will shift back to the north into the Buffalo South Towns and perhaps into the city for a time Saturday night,' said AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Elliot Abrams.

Misty: In addition to his captivating lighthouse pictures, the photographer also captured several images of downtown St Joseph (above)

Extreme conditions: This image, also taken by Mr Nowicki, shows an Amtrak train arriving in St Joseph on Thursday amid snow and wind

Snowfall: It comes as a deadly arctic blast is continuing to wreak havoc across the US, with lake-effect snow expected to dump up to five feet of snow on parts of New York state this weekend. Above, this graphic shows the areas where lake-effect snow is set to strike today

Forecast: Today, New York residents can expect to see highs of only 22 degrees, while those in Boston will see highs of 23 degrees

Warmer; Tomorrow, the temperature is predicted to rise a little across the country - although there will still be strong winds in many areas

Last night, residents from Northeastern Montana to Northwestern New York were given a windchill advisory. Above, Monday's forecast

Wind gusts of up to 40mph could make temperatures feel as low as minus 30F.

And in Texas, locals are bracing for severely icy roads that could lead to fatal traffic accidents, according to Weather.com.

By Monday, the wintry weather could be even more widespread - with freezing rain and sleet expected to affect commuters from Louisville to Boston.

It comes just a day after the weather forced schools across the US to close, filled up homeless shelters and even caused penguins to be taken inside.

The record-breaking cold, which has already claimed the lives of at least 21 people, led officials to shut down a 132-mile stretch of the Thruway in western New York on Friday - for the second time since the epic November snowstorms - amid concerns over the safety of drivers.

Meanwhile, hundreds of schools in Chicago, Boston and other large cities from the South to the Northeast and Midwest decided to close for a second day running, unable to cope with the sub-zero climates. Others chose to delay their opening by several hours.

Charred: On Friday, roughly 190 vehicles were involved in fatal pile-up along a snowy Michigan interstate that caused fires on trucks carrying fireworks and acid. Above, the charred remains of vehicles are pictured on Interstate 94 on Saturday following the accident

Wrecked: According to Michigan State Police Lt. Rick Pazder, the Friday morning accident killed one person. Above, a wrecked lorry

Clear-up: Road crews work to clear wrecked vehicles and debris along Interstate 94, the day after a series of crashes closed the highway between mile markers 88 and 92 in eastern Kalamazoo County, near Galesburg, Michigan. There were apparently 193 vehicles involved

Wrapped up: In this photo, a cyclist donning warm clothing is pictured riding through a park with the frozen Lake Michigan behind him

Cold weather: In Northeast New York, residents are preparing to deal with between one to five feet of snow today. Above, Spanish tourists are pictured taking a photo of the New York skyline on a snow-covered viewing area of Jersey City in New Jersey on Friday afternoon

Blanketed: A student walks through a Calvin College parking lot filled with snow-covered cars on Friday in Grand Rapids, Michigan

And it is was not just humans who were affected by Friday's cold - in Pittsburgh, two baby African penguins were moved indoors at the National Aviary, where the endangered animals that are native to South Africa will remain until temperatures rise.

A day earlier, train rails cracked by the cold had caused severe delays for commuters in Washington, D.C, while tens of thousands of airline passengers were also hit by 1,937 delays and 515 cancellations by mid-afternoon, according to FlightAware.com.

Commuters vented their frustration on Twitter throughout Thursday, with many posts including photos of stations and trains jam-packed with people. One Twitter user wrote that he loves being told to avoid lines that have delays, adding, 'OK, I'll just move my house and job for the day.'

The coldest place in the country on Thursday was recorded to be Estcourt Station, the northernmost point in Maine, with temperatures of minus 38 degrees F (minus 39 C), meteorologist Dan Petersen of the National Weather Service said.

Records were broken from Montpelier, Vermont, at minus 20 F (minus 29 C), to Jackson, Kentucky, with minus 1 F (minus 18 C), he said. Snow flurries were reported as far south as Jacksonville, Florida.

Cindy Palmer scrapes snow and ice off of her friend's vehicle parked outside of the Fraternal Order of Eagles in Muskegon, Michigan

Making the most of the snow: Colin Ferris, 11, plays goalkeeper during a game of hockey at Muskegon Winter Sports Complex, Michigan

Geared up: A jogger wearing reflective sunglasses makes his way north along State Street as snow falls in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Friday

Morning exercise: A jogger, from New Jersey, is pictured running in the snow following an early morning storm at Liberty State Park

Clearing up: A snow plow makes its way down South Western Avenue in Marion, Indiana, on Friday as temperatures fell to below zero

Aftermath: Doug Brende, of Sioux Falls, is pictured shoveling snow from the sidewalk outside his house on Friday following strong winds

'It's the face, it's like being hit with a sheet of ice,' Bart Adlam, 40, president of U.S. yogurt supplier siggi's, said as he rode a bike through Times Square on his way to work at 8am in New York. The wind chill there reportedly made 9 degrees F (minus 12 C) feel like 2 below (minus 18 C).

The frigid weather has even affected Florida - with snow flurries reported in the Jacksonville area on Thursday afternoon, the first time a trace of snow has been reported since December 26, 2010. Before that, the last sighting of snow was on December 22, 1995.

AMID THE DEADLY COLD, WINDS AND SNOW... ARIZONA POSTS A RECORD HIGH TEMPERATURE As the eastern US was battling a deadly arctic blast, Phoenix, Arizona, posted a record high temperature of 80 degrees on Wednesday, breaking the previous 1948 record of 79. Over in Tempe, 74-year-old Bill Justice was wearing shorts while hanging out in his yard, just days after the National Weather Service announced that 2014 was the warmest year ever recorded in Arizona. 'We can enjoy all kinds of things in the winter and the same thing in the summer,' Mr Justice said, adding that if he lived in Colorado or another cold climate, his swimming pool would be frozen by now. Advertisement

Meanwhile, there were reports of a water main break in Indiana resulting in several cars becoming 'glued' to the road by frozen water. Residents were forced to abandon their stranded cars and use public transport, or walk, to get to work and school.

And on Wednesday, a man was found dead in a portable toilet on the Northwest Side of Chicago, according to police. The cause of 51-year-old Marek Bobak's death was cold exposure and coronary artery atherosclerosis, the Cook County Medical Examiner determined on Thursday.

Even sledding hills around Chicago and ice-skating rinks in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, were shut down because of risk of wind chill, while Maine's Sugarloaf Mountain closed ski trails because of 'Arctic conditions.'

Earlier this week, the extreme conditions caused an 18-vehicle pileup on a western Pennsylvania interstate, leaving two people dead and nearly two dozen injured.

Nine trucks, several of them tractor-trailers, and nine cars were involved in the crash on Wednesday afternoon on Interstate 80 in Clarion Township, state police said. At least one of the trucks was carrying hazardous material, but no leaks were found.

None of the injuries was thought to be life-threatening, but three of the 20 or so people taken to the hospital appeared to have serious injuries. The others were treated for everything from bumps to broken bones.

And on Friday, around 193 vehicles were involved in fatal pile-up along a snowy Michigan interstate that caused fires on trucks carrying fireworks and acid. According to Michigan State Police Lt. Rick Pazder, the Friday morning accident killed one person - a trucker from Ottawa, Canada.

Meanwhile, authorities have said the severe weather and blowing snow were factors in the deaths of two northern Michigan men — an 85-year-old who was struck by a car while crossing a road to get his mail and a 64-year-old who was hit by a car while clearing snow.

A car struck 85-year-old Carl Dewey on Wednesday in Helena Township, about 30 miles northeast of Traverse City, the Antrim County sheriff's department said. There were whiteout conditions at the time, the department told The Grand Rapids Press.

Picturesque: This photograph shows a black horse walking in a field on Kennedy Creek Road in Pennsylvania during a brief snow squall

Thankful for their thick coats: Snow-covered bisons take in the morning sunshine at the Buffalo Zoo in Buffalo, New York, on Friday

Stuck in the snow: Also in Buffalo, a fresh layer of snow covers cars in Norwood Avenue, making it difficult for people to get to work

Out of service: In this photo, snow is pictured covering a wooden rollercoaster at Michigan's Adventure in North Muskegon, Michigan

The Kalkaska County sheriff's department said 64-year-old Zane Chwastek of Bear Lake Township was using a snow blower in his driveway Wednesday when a car slid off the road and struck him.

But amid the frigid conditions, Phoenix, Arizona, posted a record high temperature of 80 degrees on Wednesday, breaking the 1948 record of 79.

Over in Tempe, 74-year-old Bill Justice was wearing shorts while hanging out in his yard, just days after the National Weather Service announced that 2014 was the warmest year ever recorded in Arizona.