Photos of Dallol hydrothermal field, Danakil desert, Ethiopia

Updated: Apr 24, 2025 02:03 GMT - refresh

Dallol volcano, Feb. 2008: photos (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol volcano, Feb. 2008: photos (60 Images)

At Dallol there was a mining community where an Italian and later a U.S. company mined potash; being in use since the early 1900s it was abandoned in the 1960s. As most buildings were made of salt blocks and because of the extremely aggressive environment, the town and factory as well as what remains of a railway leading to Eritrea is little more than a pile of rubble and rust today. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol ghost town: old potash mine at Dallol volcano (14 Images)

Danakil expedition Nov-Dec 08, part III: Dallol (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Danakil expedition Nov-Dec 08, part III: Dallol (80 Images)

Danakil expedition Jan-Feb 09: Dallol hot springs (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Danakil expedition Jan-Feb 09: Dallol hot springs (61 Images)

Dallol & the salt lake Nov 2009 (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol & the salt lake Nov 2009 (48 Images)

Yellow sulfur ponds, green acid lakes, towers, salt geysers, black and red salts - Dallol is perhaps the most alien and bizarre landscape on earth! (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol Dec 2010: bizarre landscapes (95 Images)

Dallol Dec 2010: the grand salt lake (Lake Assale) (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol Dec 2010: the grand salt lake (Lake Assale) (24 Images)

Dallol Dec 2010: ghost town & potash factory (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer)

Dallol Dec 2010: ghost town & potash factory (16 Images)

Our guest Jens-Wolfram E. who participated (for his second time!) in the most recent Danakil expedition, although still traveling, sent us a first selection of "fresh images" from both Erta Ale and Dallol: (Photo: Jens-Wolfram Erben)

Erta Ale volcano + Dallol hydrothermal field Dec 2016 - Jan 2017 impressions (8 Images)

Below you find a photo gallery with exceptional images captured by one of our very enthusiastic volcano adventurers, Stefan Tommassini (www.fotografie-mit-seele.de), during his travels to the Danakil desert with our Ethiopian volcanologist and expedition leader in January 2018. The photographs include aerial drone images of the colourful salt deposits, hydrothermal hot springs and acid ponds in Dallol as well as the lava lakes on both eruption sites on Erta Ale shield volcan; the summit caldera with the north and south craters and the flank eruption site which has been active since 20 January 2017. If you are interested in traveling to this exceptional part of our planet, check out our 14 days 'Desert, salt and volcanoes' expedition! (c)

Erta Ale volcano & Dallol (Ethiopia): Jan 2018 photos by Stefan Tommasini (58 Images)

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