Dallol, Ethiopia
Encyclopedia
Dallol was a settlement in northern Ethiopia
. Located in Administrative Zone 2
of the Afar Region
in the Afar Depression
, it has a latitude and longitude of 14°14′19"N 40°17′38"E with an elevation of about 130 meters below sea level. The Central Statistical Agency
has not published an estimate for this settlement's 2005 population; it has been described as a ghost town
.
Dallol currently holds the record high average temperature for an inhabited location
on Earth, where an average annual temperature of 34°C (94°F) was recorded between the years 1960 and 1966. Dallol is also one of the most remote places on Earth. There are no roads; the only regular transport service is provided by camel
caravans which travel to the area to collect salt.
Nearby is the Dallol
volcano, which last erupted in 1926.
to a point 28 km from Dallol was completed in April 1918. Built from 1917-1918, using the 60cm-gauge Decauville
system ("Decauville" describes ready-made sections of small-gauge track which can be rapidly assembled) it transported salt from the "Iron Point" rail terminal near Dallol, via Kululli to the port.
production is said to have reached about 50,000 metric tons after the railway was constructed. Production was stopped after World War I owing to large-scale supplies from Germany, USA, and USSR. Unsuccessful attempts to reopen production were made in the period 1920-1941. Between the years 1925-29 an Italian company mined 25,000 tons of sylvite
, averaging 70% KCl, which was transported by rail to Mersa Fatma. After the Second World War, the British administration dismantled the railway and removed all traces of it.
The Dallol Co. of Asmara
sold a few tons of salt from this site to India
in 1951-1953. In the 1960s, the Parsons Company of the USA, a mining company, conducted a series of geological surveys at Dallol. By 1965, about 10,000 holes had been drilled at 65 locations.
Dallol became more known in the West in 2004 when it was featured in the Channel 4
/National Geographic documentary Going to Extremes. , some buildings still stand in Dallol (all made of salt blocks).
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
. Located in Administrative Zone 2
Administrative Zone 2 (Afar)
Administrative Zone 2 is one of five Zones of the Afar Region of Ethiopia. This zone is bordered on the south by Administrative Zone 4, on the southwest by Administrative Zone 1, on the west by the Amhara Region, and on the northeast by Eritrea. The administrative center of Zone 2 is Abala...
of the Afar Region
Afar Region
Afar is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia, and is the homeland of the Afar people. Formerly known as Region 2, its current capital is Asayita; a new capital named Semera on the paved Awash - Asseb highway is under construction....
in the Afar Depression
Afar Depression
The Afar Triangle is a geological depression that is caused by the Afar Triple Junction which is part of the Great Rift Valley. It overlaps Eritrea, Djibouti and the entire Afar Region of Ethiopia. The Afar Triangle includes the Danakil Depression and the lowest point in Africa, Lake Asal...
, it has a latitude and longitude of 14°14′19"N 40°17′38"E with an elevation of about 130 meters below sea level. The Central Statistical Agency
Central Statistical Agency (Ethiopia)
The Central Statistical Agency is an agency of the government of Ethiopia designated to provide all surveys and censuses for that country used to monitor economic and social growth, as well as to act as an official training center in that field. It is part of the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and...
has not published an estimate for this settlement's 2005 population; it has been described as a ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
.
Dallol currently holds the record high average temperature for an inhabited location
Extremes on Earth
This article describes extreme locations on Earth. Entries listed in bold are Earth-wide extremes.-Extreme elevations and temperatures per continent:This article describes extreme locations on Earth. Entries listed in bold are Earth-wide extremes....
on Earth, where an average annual temperature of 34°C (94°F) was recorded between the years 1960 and 1966. Dallol is also one of the most remote places on Earth. There are no roads; the only regular transport service is provided by camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
caravans which travel to the area to collect salt.
Nearby is the Dallol
Dallol (volcano)
Dallol is a volcanic explosion crater in the Danakil Depression, northeast of the Erta Ale Range in Ethiopia. It has been formed by the intrusion of basaltic magma in Miocene salt deposits and subsequent hydrothermal activity. Phreatic eruptions take place here, the last known one in 1926,...
volcano, which last erupted in 1926.
History
A railway from the port of Mersa Fatma in EritreaEritrea
Eritrea , officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa. Eritrea derives it's name from the Greek word Erethria, meaning 'red land'. The capital is Asmara. It is bordered by Sudan in the west, Ethiopia in the south, and Djibouti in the southeast...
to a point 28 km from Dallol was completed in April 1918. Built from 1917-1918, using the 60cm-gauge Decauville
Decauville
The Decauville manufacturing company was founded by Paul Decauville , a French pioneer in industrial railways. Decauville's major innovation was the use of ready-made sections of light, narrow gauge track fastened to steel sleepers; this track was portable and could be disassembled and transported...
system ("Decauville" describes ready-made sections of small-gauge track which can be rapidly assembled) it transported salt from the "Iron Point" rail terminal near Dallol, via Kululli to the port.
Mining
PotashPotash
Potash is the common name for various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form. In some rare cases, potash can be formed with traces of organic materials such as plant remains, and this was the major historical source for it before the industrial era...
production is said to have reached about 50,000 metric tons after the railway was constructed. Production was stopped after World War I owing to large-scale supplies from Germany, USA, and USSR. Unsuccessful attempts to reopen production were made in the period 1920-1941. Between the years 1925-29 an Italian company mined 25,000 tons of sylvite
Sylvite
Sylvite is potassium chloride in natural mineral form. It forms crystals in the isometric system very similar to normal rock salt, halite . The two are, in fact, isomorphous. Sylvite is colorless to white with shades of yellow and red due to inclusions. It has a Mohs hardness of 2.5 and a specific...
, averaging 70% KCl, which was transported by rail to Mersa Fatma. After the Second World War, the British administration dismantled the railway and removed all traces of it.
The Dallol Co. of Asmara
Asmara
Asmara is the capital city and largest settlement in Eritrea, home to a population of around 579,000 people...
sold a few tons of salt from this site to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
in 1951-1953. In the 1960s, the Parsons Company of the USA, a mining company, conducted a series of geological surveys at Dallol. By 1965, about 10,000 holes had been drilled at 65 locations.
Dallol became more known in the West in 2004 when it was featured in the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
/National Geographic documentary Going to Extremes. , some buildings still stand in Dallol (all made of salt blocks).