Darvaza flaming gas crater, Turkmenistan

Darvaza gas fire crater, Turkmenistan - darkometer rating : 8 - A crater in the desert – aka "Door to Hell" – full of countless gas fires that have been burning for decades. It literally glows in the dark at night. Really, it has to be seen to be believed. It's one of the coolest and most mesmerizing places on Earth to behold. It does have its pretty dark aspects too, since it is the result of an industrial (drilling) accident. This unique sight is the absolute highlight of a trip to Turkmenistan ! > More background info > What there is to see > Location > Access and costs > Time required > Combinations with other dark destinations > Combinations with non-dark destinations > Photos More background info: Basically the "crater" is a huge hole in the ground in the middle of the Karakum desert in Turkmenistan . The hole is some 60 to 80 yards across … available figures vary – between ca. 50 to 70m. Its depth is something like 15-30m. It's apparently the result of some botched attempt at drilling for natural gas or oil during the Soviet era. Sources also vary on exactly when this happened, but some time in the early 1970s seems to be the most often quoted period ... some sources even narrow it down to the year 1971. Yet others say the accident already happened in the 1960s, but that the gas wasn't ignited until the 1980s. What happened was basically an industrial accident. Apparently a cavern under the drilling rig collapsed and, according to some, swallowed all the gear – and the workers' camp – in the process. You can still see remnants of the industrial equipment. Otherwise it's just a hole in the empty desert. Natural gas escaping from the bottom of the crater was later ignited – exactly how and by whom is, again, not known for sure.