With snow warnings issued for Istanbul, millions are excitedly awaiting the first proper snowfall of the year and, if lucky enough, are eager to head out to play and build snowmen. But what is the proper way to go about creating the perfect snowman? Apparently, there is a very specific checklist.

Fresh snow? Check. A smallish carrot? Check. Three buttons? Check. Great! You have almost everything to build the ultimate snowman. Now, you just need to brush up on your algebra.

You would think building a snowman would not require much technique, let alone complex equations and math, especially considering that it is one of our favorite childhood winter pastimes. However, James Hinds of Nottingham Trent University has come up with a formula that guarantees a perfect snowman every time. Here's what you need:

• The key is to use freshly fallen snow that is free of litter

• The snowman must be 1.62 meters tall – about the average height of a Turkish woman

• It must have three tiers, each one following the "golden ratio" with diameters of 30 cm (for the head), 50 cm (for the body) and 80 cm (for the lower half)

• Three is the magic number for buttons and accessories – three buttons on the chest at an equal distance apart and a hat, scarf and gloves to top it all off

• No button noses here; a carrot that is about 5 cm long will do the trick

• As the windows to the soul, the eyes must be no more than 5 cm apart

• The snowman must have four limbs, arms preferably made out of sticks, and cleft legs out of snow

• The temperature outside when building your snowman should be at or below 0 degrees Celsius for optimal results



But what about all the fictional snowmen we've seen in books and on screens? How do they measure up to Hind's design? Well, out of all the abominable and adorable snowmen ever created, Olaf from the Disney film "Frozen" was the least perfect fictional snowman, scoring 15 out of 100 points, while Jack Frost from the 1998 film was found to have the most ideal proportions, with a score of 80 out of 100.