Kawah Ijen
The Kawah Ijen is a volcano on the Island of Java, Indonesia. It is known for its unique turquoise-coloured lake, and bright blue flames. The Kawah Ijen is not like usual volcanoes which spit out fiery red lava… This volcano is well known for its blazing blue flames that leave viewers amazed.
What is blue lava?
Sulphur fire is the product of sulphur catching alight from a spark and burning when it encounters hot air at temperatures higher than 360 degrees Celsius. This chemical reaction produces the phenomenon of blue fire, and the blue flames that are commonly associated with Kawah Ijan.
Lava is usually just melted rock, but the Kawah Ijen’s lava melts sulphur that flows down the side of the volcano. The lava itself isn’t blue, but it carries the blue flames from the sulphur as it melts down the mountain, making it seem as if the “sulphur-lava” is blue.
Why is it found on Kawah Ijen?
The Kawah Ijen volcano has a crater that can be found at its top. It is known for being the world’s largest blue sulphur flame area. This crater gives the volcano very high amounts of sulphur and large gas vents that release hot air.
This combination creates loads of stunning electric blue flames. These blue flames, however, aren’t very bright which means they can’t be seen easily in the daytime.
Places where the blue flame burns
- The Dallol mountain in Ethiopia has had regular blue flame sightings.
- During wildfires in Yellowstone National Park fires burn the sulphur in the park, also resulting in vibrant blue fires.
- In May of 2018, blue flames were spotted in Kīlauea in Hawaii, during the volcano’s eruption, where the volcano burned methane gas instead of the usual sulphur, which also created the blue flames
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