The London Ice Sculpting Festival is set to return to Canary Wharf next weekend ready to cement its reputation as the coolest event of the winter.

Teams from around the world will descend on Wood Wharf to carve out works along the theme of the wonders of the universe, inspired by NASA’s ongoing Mars mission.

The three day ice extravaganza, from January 11-13, will also include masterclasses for budding sculptors, a snow pit, an “interactive ice graffiti wall”, ice chess and a northern lights inspired laser show.

Sculptors from countries ranging from Latvia to the USA will take part in freestyle competitions, as well as themed singles and doubles events where they will work within a time limit to come up with an ice cool creation.

The festival gets underway on Friday morning from 11am, with a full schedule of events over the weekend. After the expert panel of judges has met, the winners of the 2013 prizes will be announced at 4pm on Saturday - but there will still be plenty on offer to tempt people out into the cold throughout Sunday.

For more information, visit www.londonicesculptingfestival.co.uk.