Richard And Jo Demeester's photos with the keyword: Erta Ale

Pressure beneath the crust causes a dramatic break out of lava. Erta Ale Volcano.

The thin fresh crust of rock tries to form over the massive lake of lava, but it is quickly liquified and absorbed once more in a cycle of heating and cooling.

As the sun rose, we could finally see the warped countours of the lava lake crust. But day or night, Erta Ale never sleeps.

No reflections in this lake, though. Dawn comes, and there was a new appreciation of Erta Ale. The lava activity and the sun rising were a perfect pair.

Thankyou, Carl, for lending me your lens. Last photo before going to bed.

Besides the need to avoid desert heat, the lava activity is so much easier to take in when it is dark. Erta Ale creates an incredible, though momentary, lava "tree" for us.

Erta Ale Volcano.

Lava in the Erta Ale Volcano crater.

Beautiful shapes and patterns appeared when large pools of lava became so intense that they bubbled and frothed erratically and spurted skywards.

Erta Ale lava lake. The cracks caused by the molten lava expand into immense bubbling pools before cooling just enough to crust over.

Mesmerising changing formations in the Erta Ale lava lake, as rock changes state between molten and solid and back again.

We ascended after dark to avoid the desert heat, and spent most of the evening and morning admiring one of the most amazing sights. I even singed the hair on my arms standing there. We camped on the rim of the crater (not precariously near the edge, though!) and admired the lava lake for sunrise, heading down before it got too hot.