'Door to Hell' phenomenon still burns after 40 years.

 

An enormous crater, the site has burned continuously for since 1971 - almost 50 years - leaving scientists puzzled.
It is 226 ft in diameter and 98 ft deep - a rather enormous natural gas fire, which many choose to camp near to (maybe for the heat it gives off 24 hours a day).
Full of fire, boiling mud and huge orange flames, one can understand how the site earned the name “Door to Hell”, giving to it by locals.
The area is a natural gas field, one of the largest in the world.

The Darvaza Gas Crater was created when the gas field collapsed into an underground cavern.
Soviet scientists were searching for oil in the area in 1971, and found the methane reserve, which caused the area to collapse, releasing the gas.
Worried about the effects of the dangerous gas, the scientists set the gas alight to make the area safe.
However, the gas and been burning for a very long time, even after scientists expected it to burn out after a few weeks.