The Darvaza gas crater aka The Gates of Hell in Turkmenistan was formed either in the late 60's or early 70's. It is a natural gas field that collapsed into a crater 230 feet wide and 100 feet deep. At some point shortly after appearing, it was set alight apparently by Soviet officials. While the story differs between local and official entities, nevertheless, the crater has been on fire for 50 years. In January 2022, Turkmenistan President Berdymukhamedov publicly declared to
extinguish the fire so that the effects on the environment and public
health can be curbed.
Photographer and explorer George Kourounis with the Royal Canadian Geological Society was the first person to visit the floor of the crater. Wearing protective gear to survive the 700F heat, he took soil samples which yielded some interesting findings. There are several types of heretofore unknown extremophile bacteria living in the hot, methane rich environment and scientist believe that they consume the methane. In my mind, this certainly points to one of the ways life began on Earth as well as suggesting that such conditions and life could possibly exist elsewhere in the Universe.
This is like a part of a human's innards being exposed -- like something we're not meant to see...
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