Tanzania’s Ol Doinyo Lengai is the only active volcano known to erupt natrocarbonatite, the coolest lava on Earth: it flows at roughly 500–590°C, against 1,100°C or more for Hawaiian basalt. Fresh flows look black or dark brown in daylight, then react with rain and atmospheric moisture until the mountainside turns chalk

Ol Doinyo Lengai’s 500–590°C carbonate lava flows black, then atmospheric moisture and rain transform its unstable minerals into pale, rapidly weathering surfaces. The post Tanzania’s Ol Doinyo Lengai is the only active volcano known to erupt natrocarbonatite, the coolest lava on Earth: it flows at roughly 500–590°C, against 1,100°C or more for Hawaiian basalt. Fresh flows look black or dark brown in daylight, then react with rain and atmospheric moisture until the mountainside turns chalk-white—as though someone spilled milk over the lava. appeared first on Space Daily . Full investigative context and verified commentary are published by **Spacedaily**. [Read Full Story on Spacedaily →](https://spacedaily.com/t-ol-doinyo-lengai-natrocarbonatite-coolest-lava-black-white/)