The Gate of Hell in Turkmenistan: a scientific error

In Turkmenistan, there is a mysterious place where fire has been continuously burning since 1971. This place is called “the Gate of Hell”

Do you know Turkmenistan? Many people have already heard of this country but very few know how to place it on a map.

Rest assured, this country is still very little known, and one of the most closed in the world, there are only 10,000 to 15,000 tourists each year. In recent years, this country of the former USSR wishes to position a scientific error as a real tourist asset.

It is a giant crater that has been spitting fire for over 40 years. It was in 1971, exactly, that everything began when Soviet geologists prospected the area around the Karakoum desert and, by mistake, pierced underground layers containing a large amount of gas. Under the shock, the geologists, for fear that the gas becomes toxic, decided to set fire there, hoping that it would burn until its extinction... Today the flames are still lit, showing the extent of the country’s gas reserves, being the fourth largest in the world!

Nickname “The Gate of Hell” , this giant crater is 70 meters in diameter and about 20 meters deep! It is essentially a natural gas field located in Derweze (also written Darvaza, which means “door”). More and more tourists go to the crater to admire this show that some define as impressive or even scary!

Yes, because no grid or protection prevents visitors from a possible landslide... Sand soil is likely to collapse at any time! Not to mention the heat, the summer temperature can reach up to 50 degrees and the burning air packs keep escaping from the crater!

Despite the danger, the government wants to develop tourism by trying to reach an amateur audience of strong sensations or nature lovers... For, whatever we say, to face a giant fire crater in the wilderness in Turkmenistan must still do its effect!

Main photo credit: Wikimedia – Tormod Sandtorv