The Danakil (or Dallol) Depression has an average temperature of 34-35 degrees C and drops to 116m below sea sea level at its lowest point near Lake Asale. This vast and practically unpopulated region is tectonically active and has strange lunar landscapes, active volcanoes, pungent sulphur hot-springs, solidified black lava flows and huge salt-encrusted basins.
The Danakil lies on the junction of the African, Arabian and Somali tectonic plates and the whole area was once submerged by saline water. Now only lakes Asale and Afrera remain, but these form the basis of an ancient and highly profitable salt-extraction industry. Seismic studies suggest that in some areas, the salt layer is up to 2km deep.
There are more than 30 active and dormant volcanoes in the Danakil region, including Erte Ale, one of the most active volcanoes in Africa. It has held a permanent lava lake for more than 120 years and been in a state of permanent eruption since studies started in 1967!
Daytime temperatures in the Danakil frequently reach over 50 degrees C and the environment is very exposed. Its nomadic Afar inhabitants have lived in the area for at least 2000 years, and have a fearsome reputation - As recently as the 1930s, it was still considered customary to kill and castrate strangers!
