View into the lava lake of Erta Ale volcano, Ethiopia - stock photo

View from the crater rim of Erta Ale - one of the most active vulancoes in the world - into the active, red glowing lava lake. Erta Ale is a continuously active basaltic shield volcano in the Afar Region of northeastern Ethiopia, only some kilometers from the border to Eritrea. The Afar Depression (or Danakil Depression) in the border-triangle between Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti is one of the most remote and most extreme regions of the world - it is the lowest point in Africa (- 155 metres/-550 ft below sea level) and one of the hottest places on Earth. The Danakil/Afar Depression is the product of a tectonic triple junction, where the spreading ridges that form the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden emerge on land and meet the East African Rift. Here the Earth's crust is slowly rifting apart at a rate of 1–2 centimetres (0.3–0.8 in) per year. Erta ale is ond of the most dangerous places on earth - the lat major eruptions took place in September 2005, August 2007 and November 2008.