Do not try and swim in this, not matter how inviting (Picture: Martin Rietze / Media Drum World)

This is not the work of CGI or some evil wizard form a Disney movie – this lava is genuinely blue.

An engineer managed to capture this phenomenon spewing from the Kawah Ijen volcano in Indonesia.

Unlike the black and blue dress (or was it white and gold?), this lava’s colouring isn’t a trick of the eye, and is produced by sulphur burning off the lava.

The electric blue glow occurs in unique and rare conditions when volcanic environments release both lava and sulphur simultaneously.


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what are the odds this will be a backdrop to a scene in the new Bond film? (Picture: Martin Rietze / Media Drum World)

If this were to be viewed in daylight, the lava would have the orange glow we all recognise, however the dark surroundings made the perfect settings for amateur photographer Martin Rietze, 50, to capture the eerie sight.



While Martin, from Germany, might have risked life and limb to photograph the phenomenon, it is nothing compared to the workers who have to wait for the sulphuric rock to cool so they can collect and sell it.

For this dangerous work the men can expect to make about £4 in 12 hours of work – which is low even for Indonesia which has an average daily income of less than £9.

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Spooky (Picture: Martin Rietze / Media Drum World)