Officially, Door to Hell is known as the Darvaza Gas Crater, located in the Karakum Desert, Central Turkmenistan, a little over 150 miles from the country’s capital.
Door to Hell is a big pit having lots of small fires. Wherever you look, it’s just thousands of these small fires and there is no smoke.
It is very clean that one can see its beauty without any obstacle.
It’s neither volcanic nor Magma, in fact this sinister flame pit was man made and thought to be the result of a soviet Era gas drilling accident.
It’s size is similar to a football field (69 metres wide and 30 metres deep) that’s been perpetually burning now for approximate 50 years.
It has been there since around 1960.
In 2010, president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow ordered that the hole should be closed but that doesn’t seem to have happened.
George Kourounis descends into the crater..(Photo Credit: National Geographic Channels/George Verschoor)
Canadian adventurer, George Kourounis, was the first known person to descent into the pit in 2013, and he described it to the National Geographic who partly funded this expedition as a Coliseum of Fire.
The aim was to collect soil samples from the bottom of the pit to try to establish whether life can exist in such a harsh environment.
Mr Kourounis is pictured wearing his heat resistant aluminium suit, test temperature on the edge of the crater.
The Turkmen government is trying to develop it as a tourist attractions and Kourounis said there is not even so much a railing. So, you can stand as close to the real life hell mouth as you want.
Few more facts about Door to Hell are:
Top view of Door To Hell from the sky.
Temperatures inside the crater reaches 1000 degree Celsius.
Door to Hell is the fourth place on earth that doesn’t stop burning.
Door to Hell attract between 12000 to 15000 visitors an year.
Door to Hell location on google maps is 40°15′8″N 58°26′23″E.
