Oldonyo
Lengai means "The Mountain of God", in the
Maasai language.
It is approximately 150 miles north west of Arusha.
It's elevation is of 2886 meters.
It is the most active volcano in Tanzania, with the
last eruption being in 1983
 
Ol Doinyo Lengai is a unique and extremely
fascinating volcano that is located about 120 km NW
of Arusha, Tanzania. It is the only volcano in the world
that erupts natrocarbonatite lava, highly fluid lava
that contains almost no silicon. Natrocarbonatite lava
is also much cooler than other types of lava; being
only about 950 degrees F (510 degrees C) compared to
temperatures over 2000 degrees F (~1100 degrees C) for
basaltic lava. Natrocarbonatite is the most fluid lava
in the world, with low gas content can flow like a whitewater
stream, and actually has a viscosity near that of water.
Natrocarbonatite lava glows orange at night, but is
not nearly as bright as silicon-based lava since it
is not as hot. During the day it is not incandescent;
most flows look like very fluid black oil, or brown
foam, depending on the gas content. In the past, some
visitors to the crater believed they were seeing mud
flows. Most newly solidified lava is black and contains
crystals that sparkle brightly in the sun. There are
also small flows known as "squeeze-ups" that
are light gray when they flow and solidify. Contact
with moisture rapidly turns natrocarbonatite lava white
because of chemical reactions that occur when the lava
absorbs water.
Eventually the water absorption process turns lava flows
into brown powder. In dry weather the whitening of flows
happens over a period of a few days to a couple of weeks,
depending on the thickness of the flow. In rainy weather
the lava surface turns white immediately. In parts of
the crater that have been inactive for several months,
the ground is light brown/white and so soft that one’s
feet sink into it when walking.
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