Mud volcano crater

The crater of an unnamed mud volcano silvering, displaying layers of eruptions from past decades. The formation, roughly 5 km wide in diameter and 30 meters high, is flat and mostly covered by grass, lending contrast to the traces of fresh eruptions. Gobustan area, Azerbaijan.

 

Some sources say that 300 of the 700 mud volcanoes on Earth are in the coastal area of Azerbaijan. Mud volcanoes are closely associated with underground petrochemical reserves and the gas trying to escape to the surface. Every 20 years or so, the gas ignites deep below the surface, creating an explosion, although this is generally not dangerous to humans. They usually erupt quietly, spitting water mixed with salts or acid.

Temperatures in a mud volcano are much cooler than those in a regular volcano. Mud volcanoes also tend to be smaller in size, with the biggest around 10 kilometers in diameter and 700 meters high.

One interesting fact is that NASA geologists studying Mars have concluded that the planet’s uplands are similar in structure to the mud volcanoes of Azerbaijan.

 

By the numbers:
TIME: 16:45
DATE: sep/15
FILE SIZE: 71MP

Illustration by: watershapesearth

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Volcano  

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Azerbaijan