Miss wrote

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An ominous gas crater that has been burning in a Turkmen desert for more than 40 years is a perfect site for boosting tourism in the country, local officials and academics say. The man-made pit, known as the Door to Hell, earlier faced backfill.

Tourism may not be the strongest side of the Central Asian republics economy, as only around 10,000 visitors come to Turkmenistan yearly, according to official stats most of them from Iran, Germany and the US. However, local tourism officials say they found a promising tourist attraction and it is really hot.

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The pit is filled by what seems to be a hellish fire, but is in fact an enormous blaze of natural gas coming from under the ground. No one is really sure, when the fire in the 60-meter wide, 20-meter deep crater may go out, but it is known for certain that it was started after a drilling accident in 1971.

The ground at the site collapsed when Soviet geologists were exploring a natural gas field one of the many reserves in the gas-rich country, which used to be a Soviet republic. Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident, but fearing that poisonous gas fumes may pose a danger for the local population and animals, the geologists decided to set them on fire, thinking they will soon burn out.

The guys apparently miscalculated and the gas is still burning, creating a surreal otherworldly scene.

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This would be so awesome to see in person.