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What is the secret of the 'Doors of Hell' which has been burning for the last 55 years in the Karakum Desert of Turkmenistan?
Samira Vishwas | September 6, 2026 11:24 AM CST


In the middle of the vast and desolate Karakum Desert of Turkmenistan, the beautiful country of Central Asia, there exists a mysterious corner of the earth which is known by the local people and tourists from all over the world as 'Door to Hell'. This is a huge crater, about 69 meters wide and about 30 meters deep, inside which strong flames have been burning continuously for the last 55 years and a flood of fire is rising from within the ground. This scary and mysterious place is officially called 'Darvaza Gas Crater', which illuminates the sky with orange light from several kilometers away in the dark of night. Every year, thousands of adventurous tourists and scientists from all over the world are drawn to this remote area to see this burning land of the desert. This mysterious fire, which has been burning non-stop for decades in the middle of a desolate desert, still remains an unresolved question for humanities and science, which is exciting for everyone to uncover. What major mistake of the Soviet Union is hidden behind the continuous fire burning in this huge crater for decades? On digging into the pages of history of this mysterious and blazing door of hell, a scientific mistake of the Soviet Union (USSR) of the year 1971 comes to light, which has become the curse of this desert today. At that time, geologists and engineers of the Soviet Union were doing drilling (mining) work to discover huge reserves of natural gas and oil in this area. While digging, their machines suddenly hit a huge underground cave filled with natural gas, due to which that huge part of the ground suddenly sank down and a huge crater was formed. From this deadly pit, highly poisonous methane gas and other hydrocarbon gases started leaking continuously, which could prove fatal not only for the laborers working there and the villagers living nearby but also for the local environment and cattle. At that time, scientists decided that to stop this gas from spreading, it should be set on fire so that within a few weeks the gas would burn and the leakage would stop, but no one had even dreamed that their temporary solution would become a permanent disaster that would not be extinguished for decades. Why has the fire started by scientists and Soviet engineers not been extinguished till date instead of being extinguished in a few weeks? Initially, scientists had estimated that this dangerous gas would completely burn out within a few days or weeks and the fire would subside on its own. But what they completely failed to realize was that the underground chamber they had reached was actually the core of one of the world's largest natural gas reserves. This reserve of gas inside the ground was so limitless and huge that there was a continuous supply of gas from below, due to which instead of extinguishing the fire, it became more severe with time. The continuous presence of oxygen for the last 55 years and this endless combination of natural fuel coming from below has made this crater a natural furnace which no technology in the world has been able to extinguish till date. This fire burning non-stop amidst the desert sand has been recorded in the history of science as one of the biggest mistakes of human assessment, the consequences of which are being borne by the entire nature today. Why has this burning crater become a headache for the Turkmenistan government and scientists in terms of environment and economy? While this smoldering 'Doors of Hell' in the Karakum Desert has attracted tourists from all over the world, on the other hand it has become a big headache for the Turkmenistan government and environmentalists. This pit is continuously emitting huge amounts of poisonous methane gas and carbon dioxide, which, along with promoting global warming, is causing huge damage to the ozone layer and the surrounding environment. This is also a huge economic loss for the country's economy because for the last five decades, precious natural gas has been burning in the air, which could have been used for the country's development or energy production. The then President of Turkmenistan had many times given strict instructions to modern engineers to extinguish this fire or exploit this gas, but every time this mission remained incomplete due to extreme heat within the desert, effects of poisonous gases and technical complexities. Environment lovers and scientists are continuously demanding that this gas crater be closed safely through scientific methods so that the environment can be saved from this continuous damage. Will the fire of this 'door to hell' ever be extinguished in the future or will this mystery always burn like this? Today, scientists all over the world are racking their brains over whether the fire of this smoldering 'door to hell' can be extinguished forever or whether it will continue to burn like this for centuries. Despite modern technology and space age engineering, it is impossible for humans to survive for long near this crater because the temperature and poisonous smoke there can end any life in a moment. Some geologists suggest that if the underground gas path is completely cut off by using concrete and special air-tight sealing techniques around the pit, then perhaps this fire can be controlled. However, such a mega project is likely to involve huge expenditure of billions of dollars, due to which governments have so far refrained from taking any concrete final decision. Unless any revolutionary step is taken in this direction, this fire will continue to burn in the middle of the Karakum desert and will continue to surprise tourists from all over the world with its terrifying beauty.


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