Darvaza gas crater
burning natural gas field in Turkmenistan
The Darvaza gas crater (Turkmen: Garagum ýalkymy), also known as the Door to Hell or Gates of Hell, officially the Shining of Karakum, is a burning natural gas field collapsed into a cavern near Darvaza, Turkmenistan. Hundreds of natural gas fires illuminate the floor and rim of the crater. The crater has been burning since 1971. Drilling punctured a natural-gas cavern, the cavern's roof collapsed, and some sources state that engineers ignited the crater to prevent poisonous gases from spreading.
The crater is near the village of Darvaza in the middle of the Karakum Desert. Located about 260 kilometres (160 mi) north of Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, it has a diameter of 60–70 metres (200–230 ft) and a depth of about 30 metres (98 ft). Another nearby gas crater is fenced off and has a distinct odor.
History
The early years of the crater's history are still being determined. Relevant records are either absent from the archives, classified, or inaccessible. Some local geologists have claimed that the collapse of a crater happened in the 1960s; it was set on fire only in the 1980s to prevent the emission of poisonous gases.
The public source identifies “Darvaza gas crater” as burning natural gas field in Turkmenistan. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Darvaza, crater and burning.
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Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 31, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q70458. VIAF identifies the subject as 3972154260694824480005. Authority coordinates are 40.253, 58.439. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1971.
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This entry incorporates text from “Darvaza gas crater” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.