Ramon Crater
About Ramon Crater
Ramon Crater (also known as Makhtesh Ramon) in the Negev desert is the world’s largest erosion crater, measuring 40km long, about 2 to 10km wide and up to 500m deep. Ramon Crater forms Israel’s largest national park, Makhtesh Ramon Nature Reserve, a fantastic place for hiking, off-road touring, cycling, horseback riding, camping and other outdoor activities.
Negev Craters
Unlike craters created through impact or collision, the Negev and Sinai craters are formed by erosion and unique to these two regions only in the world. A makhtesh is a large, asymmetrical hole formed by erosion as the region made the transition from ocean to desert. Each crater is typically drained by a wadi (valley). The word makhtesh means a “mortar grinder” in Hebrew. This landform was so named because of its similarity to a grinding bowl.
Makhtesh Ramon Nature Reserve
Once a camp for the workers who were building the road to Eilat in 1951, Mitzpe Ramon is now a thriving town that sits on the edge of the crater – attracting travellers who are looking for some desert fun and adventure. The ultimate way to experience Ramon Crater is to go through the crater, visiting the Ammonites Wall of fossils or the Carpentry with its prism-shaped stones or its many hidden nooks and crannies or stargazing in the night.
Interesting Facts
- There are only seven such craters in the world, five of them located in Israel and two in the Sinai Desert near the Egypt-Israel border.
- The three largest craters are found in Israel – Makhtesh Ramon, Makhtesh Gadol and Makhtesh Katan
- The museum at the Visitors Centre is dedicated to the first Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon who died along with six other crew members in the Space Shuttle Columbia accident in 2003. Born Ilan Wolferman, he changed his surname to Ramon as he loved the Makhtesh Ramon region.
