HaMakhtesh HaKatan ( he, הַמַּכְתֵּשׁ הַקָּטָן, ''lit.'' The Small Crater) is a

makhtesh A makhtesh ( he, מַכְתֵּשׁ (), Hebrew plural: ( – ''Makhteshim'') is a geological landform considered typical for the Negev desert of Israel and the Sinai peninsula of Egypt. A makhtesh has steep walls of resistant rock surrounding a ...

, a

geological Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Eart ...

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is di ...

al landform of Israel's

Negev The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southe ...

desert. One of five makhteshim in Israel, and seven in the world, it is the third largest in Israel at 5 km by 7 km. It was charted in 1942 by Jewish explorers. HaMakhtesh HaKatan Aerial photo

See also