Satellites have captured an eerie, skull-like pattern within the crater of the Trou-o-Natron volcano, a long-dormant geological feature in Chad’s central Sahara Desert. Locally known as Dun Orei, or “big hole,” the formation appears from above as a stark white face etched into the earth’s surface. The phenomenon was highlighted by Science Alert on November 5, sparking curiosity about its origin.
Experts attribute the image to pareidolia, a psychological tendency to perceive familiar shapes in random patterns. The human brain often seeks faces even where none exist, a trait that may explain the unsettling visage. The “skull” is actually a dried soda lake formed by natron salts from ancient hot springs and steam vents. Its protruding features—resembling eyes and a nose—are cinder cones, mounds of volcanic ash left by past eruptions.
The volcano lies within the Tibesti Mountains, Africa’s highest desert massif, yet remains one of the least explored regions. Systematic geological surveys began in the 1960s, revealing that around 14,000 years ago, the caldera once held a glacial lake that later evaporated, leaving behind a salt crust. Today, the crater’s appearance evokes a somber face, a testament to nature’s capacity to create bizarre forms.
Separately, Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano erupted on October 18, with footage showing a smoke plume reaching 4.8 kilometers high. The U.S. Geological Survey reported eruptions from both northern and southern craters, though these events are unrelated to the Sahara anomaly.
