The Darvaza Crater in Turkmenistan, nicknamed the "door to hell", has been burning continuously for over 40 years after Soviet geologists accidentally drilled into an underground gas cavern in 1971, causing a sinkhole. The 225 foot wide and 98 foot deep crater sits in the middle of the Karakum Desert and taps into one of Turkmenistan's largest natural gas fields. Rather than let poisonous gas escape, the geologists decided to burn off the gas, though it continues burning to this day.

1. Gas Crater in
Turkmenistan

3. Nicknamed the ‘door to hell’, the Darvaza Crater in Turkmenistan has been burning for
over 40 years. The 225 ft wide (69 meters) and 98 ft deep (30 meters) crater is located
in the middle of the Karakum Desert which occupies about 70% of the area of
Turkmenistan.

5. Turkmenistan possesses the world’s fourth largest reserves of natural
gas in the world and Darvaza Crater is located in the heart of a natural
gas field in the Ahal region, about 270 km (168 miles) north of the
country’s capital, Ashgabat.

7. Although the origin is still disputed, the widely accepted story is that
Soviet geologists in 1971 were drilling a borehole to prospect for gas
when they accidentally drilled into an underground cavern, creating a
sinkhole. Fearing the crater would emit poisonous gas the scientists
decided to set it alight, thinking the gas would eventually burn out. It
hasn’t.

10. That’s Been Burning Since 1971