Darvaza Gas Crater

The Darvaza Gas Crater lies in the Karakum Desert near the village of Darvaza in Ahal Province, Turkmenistan, about 260 kilometers north of the capital Ashgabat. It measures 60 to 70 meters across and roughly 30 meters deep, and formed after drilling activity punctured an underground natural gas cavern, causing the cavern's roof to collapse into a sinkhole; sources indicate the resulting gas was later ignited to keep poisonous fumes from spreading across the surrounding desert. The crater has been burning continuously since 1971, with hundreds of natural gas fires lighting its floor and rim, burning cleanly without visible smoke. It continues to vent significant methane, measured at roughly 1,300 kilograms an hour between 2022 and 2025 and rising to about 1,960 kilograms an hour by October 2025. This entity documents the Darvaza Gas Crater specifically as a geological formation, a collapsed natural gas cavern that has burned continuously since 1971.